Karnataka households that missed the Gruha Jyothi verification survey can submit their documents at the nearest electricity supply company (Escom) sub-division office by October 31, giving beneficiaries whose homes were locked or vacant a final opportunity to protect their eligibility for the free electricity scheme.
The state government extended the verification deadline after Bescom highlighted the number of consumers who could not participate in the door-to-door exercise. Under the special arrangement, eligible consumers must visit the relevant Escom office in person and complete document verification before the deadline.
In Bescom’s jurisdiction, which covers eight districts, Gruha Jyothi has 74,29,773 beneficiaries. This includes consumers covered under the Bhagya Jyothi, Kuteera Jyothi and Amrutha Jyothi schemes. More than 72,40,000 beneficiaries had completed verification as of this week, representing almost 97.5% of the total enrolled beneficiaries.
The survey also identified close to 16.1 lakh locked houses and 28,519 vacant houses. These properties could not be verified through the door-to-door process because consumers were unavailable when survey teams visited. The government’s one-time extension is intended to allow such consumers to submit the required documents directly rather than lose access because of their absence during the field exercise.
The arrangement places the responsibility for completing the process on the beneficiary. Consumers who missed the survey have been asked to approach the nearest Escom sub-division office within the revised window. In Bengaluru and the surrounding areas covered by Bescom, the relevant office will handle document submission and verification for eligible domestic consumers.
Gruha Jyothi provides free electricity to eligible domestic consumers up to the prescribed limit. The verification exercise is intended to confirm the continuing eligibility of beneficiaries and ensure that the subsidy is linked to the correct consumer and household records. The large number of locked homes recorded during the survey also shows the administrative difficulty of relying entirely on physical verification for electricity-linked welfare delivery.
The October 31 deadline is the final date announced for document verification under this special arrangement. Beneficiaries who missed the door-to-door survey must complete the process at their respective Escom sub-division office before then to avoid complications with their eligibility under Gruha Jyothi.
