Amaravati: The Andhra Pradesh government will provide free electricity to weavers from Wednesday, April 1, with 200 units for handlooms and 500 units for powerlooms, at an estimated annual cost of Rs 150 crore.
According to a press release, the initiative aims to reduce the burden of power charges and encourage the weaving profession.
“Free power will be implemented statewide from Wednesday. Handlooms will receive 200 units of electricity and powerlooms 500 units free of cost,” the release said.
The scheme is expected to benefit around one lakh handloom families and 11,488 powerloom units.
Eligible handloom weaver families are projected to save approximately Rs 8,640 per year, while powerloom operators could save up to Rs 21,600 annually.
The release added that the National Democratic Alliance government has introduced several measures to support weavers and address challenges faced during the previous Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) regime.
These measures include increasing the weavers’ pension to Rs 4,000 per month, allocating Rs 5 crore as thrift funds to weavers’ cooperatives, and offering subsidies of up to 90 per cent for the purchase of modern machinery.
