Gruha Jyothi verification raises concerns about the benefits

BESCOM staff verifying details of Gruha Jyothi beneficiaries in Bengaluru on Thursday. | Photo credit: SUDHAKARA JAIN

The door-to-door verification of Gruha Jyothi beneficiaries and the documents required from them has left many people confused and afraid that they will lose the benefits of free electricity up to 200 units.

According to a press release issued by the power ministry, consumers have been asked to provide Aadhaar, voter ID, PAN card, lease or tenancy agreement, caste certificate and ration card details during this verification process.

Questions have been raised as to why caste certificate, ration cards and PAN cards are sought when the Gruha Jyothi scheme is a universal scheme with no exceptions except for their electricity consumption.

Earlier, Chief Minister DK Shivakumar also said that non-voters of Karnataka will be removed from the list of beneficiaries of the Gruha Jyothi Guarantee Scheme. Therefore, entering voter ID details will help the department to identify voters and non-voters.

However, the demand for PAN card details from the beneficiaries has raised doubts as to whether professionals who are taxpayers will be delisted from Gruha Jyothi 2.0. A beneficiary residing in RT Nagar said, “When the scheme was launched, the government asked for electricity bill and Aadhaar card. Now when they enter the PAN details, the government can easily track whether the beneficiary is a tax payer and remove them. I have also provided voter ID, Aadhaar and PAN details.”

Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Legislative Assembly R. Ashok took to social media platform X and claimed that the government seeking copies of PAN card and caste certificate indicated that it wants to exclude many from the benefits of the Gruha Jyothi scheme, which was touted as a universal scheme before the polls. “Voter ID and Aadhar card are more than enough to identify whether the recipient was a voter in the state or not. Why does the government need caste certificate and PAN cards?” he asked.

A senior Bescom official said, “At present, all Escoms are only collecting all data related to Gruha Jyothi beneficiaries. The government will invite anyone who is eligible or ineligible to remove them from the list.”

Over the past two days, 85,331 residences have been inspected across the state.

Published – 02 Jul 2026 23:20 IST