In a first, Delhi residents will soon be getting compensated for long power cuts. The Aam Aadmi Party's proposal about monetary compensation to Delhi residents has finally been approved by Lt. governor Anil Baijal. The policy by the power department aims to compensate customers in cases of unscheduled and long power cuts, something which is a frequent occurrence in the Delhi summer. 

The proposal was forwarded by the Arvind Kejriwal government to LG's office for approval and has been cleared, much to the delight of Delhi residents already sweating in the sultry weather. The capital city has become the first Indian city to have such a policy in place. 

This is a revolutionary and a v innovative policy of Delhi govt which will make DISCOMS directly accountable to people. https://t.co/XpkSzYCDMb

For unscheduled power cuts, the first hour is free of any penalty for the power discoms. For the next hour, they are required to pay consumers Rs 50, and from there on Rs 100 for every hour. Basically, more than enough to burn a few aroma candles during the power cut. 

Also, the penalty-free first hour is available to power discoms only once a day, which means if there is more than one power cut in a single day, consumers will get compensated for the first hour of the second power cut also. The compensation will be directly added to the monthly electricity bills of consumers. 

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If the power discoms fail to pay consumers, they can file a complaint with the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Authority (DERC), and the compensation amount then will be Rs 5,000 or 5 times more than the original compensation. You are praying you don't get it in the first go, aren't you? 

In case you are wondering who are these power discoms we talk about, there are three of them that provide electricity in the capital – BSES companies BYPL and BRPL, and the Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL). The 3 private discoms provide power in areas except the ones under NDMC and the Delhi Cantonment. 

All you Delhiites, summer doesn't look that dreadful anymore now, does it?