Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has approved 50,000 new agricultural electricity connections this year, providing relief to farmers awaiting power supply for irrigation, while committing to subsidise their electricity consumption.
The Energy Department has issued a government order authorising the Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) to implement the programme.
The approval follows a proposal submitted by the utility after Electricity Minister C.T.R Nirmal Kumar announced the initiative during the Assembly’s budget session in August. Of the connections approved, 20,000 will be provided under the normal category, with the government meeting the entire cost. Another 3,372 connections will be issued through the self-financing scheme, under which farmers deposit the amount required for their sanctioned electricity load.
The largest share, comprising 25,282 connections, has been allocated to the Tatkal fast-track scheme, which offers applicants a shorter waiting period. The remaining 1,346 connections will be provided under various government schemes.
The government will subsidise the recurring electricity consumption charges for the additional connections, estimated at Rs 127.56 crore. TNPDCL will bear the installation expenditure, which is expected to be around Rs 750 crore.
The allocations cover connections under different payment and application arrangements, while extending the state’s free electricity policy to the agricultural consumers brought into the network through the programme during the year.
Tamil Nadu provides free electricity to agricultural consumers as a policy measure, compensating the distribution utility through government subsidies.
Around 24 lakh agricultural electricity connections across the state currently benefit from the arrangement. In the 2025-26 financial year, the government released more than Rs 7,000 crore towards the subsidy for free agricultural power.
The newly approved connections will add to the number of beneficiaries covered by the continuing support programme.
The decision comes against the backdrop of a substantial backlog of applications. More than three lakh farmers are still waiting for agricultural electricity connections, highlighting the continuing demand for access to power for farming operations.
The previous DMK government provided 1.70 lakh free agricultural connections between 2021 and 2026. Despite those additions, the waiting list has remained sizeable.
The latest approval sets out the number of connections to be released under each category, and the financial responsibilities of the government and TNPDCL. Its implementation will bring another 50,000 agricultural consumers into the electricity network, although a significant backlog will remain.
–IANS
