Why a power-bill subsidy
Rajasthan's western desert and central arid zones depend on tubewell irrigation. Even with subsidised tariffs, a 5-7 HP pump running 4-6 hours daily during Rabi can rack up monthly bills of ₹2,000-3,500. The Mukhyamantri Kisan Mitra Urja Yojana (launched 17 July 2021) reimburses up to 60 % of the metered electricity bill, capped at ₹1,000/month and ₹12,000/year.
Rajasthan's agriculture spans diverse zones: the desert districts of Jaisalmer-Bikaner-Barmer (millets, pulses, cumin), semi-arid Jodhpur-Pali- Nagaur (mustard, gram, fodder), the south-east Hadoti region (soybean, maize, mustard) and the north Sriganganagar-Hanumangarh canal command (wheat, cotton, sugarcane). Tubewell density rises sharply in areas with assured groundwater, but the resulting electricity bills strain marginal-farmer finances. MKMUY is structurally complementary to the longer- term PM-KUSUM solarisation pathway — it provides immediate operating-cost relief while solar installations scale up. The 60 % subsidy applied directly to the DISCOM bill eliminates the cash-flow friction of upfront payment-and-reimbursement, which is critical given that marginal farmers tend to delay bill payment when irrigation peaks coincide with pre-harvest cash-tight phases.
Eligibility
- Rajasthan farmer with a metered agricultural electricity connection.
- Excluded: Income-tax payers; serving or retired government employees.
How the subsidy lands
The credit is applied directly to the DISCOM bill — there is no out-of-pocket reimbursement. Farmer pays only the balance after subsidy. DISCOM raises a monthly claim with the Rajasthan Energy Department for the subsidy portion.
How to apply — step by step
- Visit energy.rajasthan.gov.in or the local DISCOM office (JVVNL / AVVNL / JdVVNL).
- Submit electricity consumer number, Aadhaar, bank account (Aadhaar-seeded), and self-declaration of non-IT-payer and non-government-employee status.
- DISCOM verifies consumer-number — Aadhaar linkage and applies the 60 % subsidy (capped at ₹1,000/month) to the bill from the next billing cycle.
- Farmer pays only the post-subsidy balance; DISCOM raises a monthly claim with the Energy Department for the subsidy portion.
- For grievances, file with the DISCOM divisional office or on the energy portal grievance tab.
Latest changes (2024 — 2026)
- 2024-25: MKMUY continued at ~₹750 crore annual outlay; exclusions for IT-payers and government employees retained.
- March 2025: AgriStack Farmer ID integration for cross-verification of beneficiary categories.
- August 2025: Convergence with PM-KUSUM Component C (IPS) and FLS — DISCOMs actively converting metered farmer feeders to solar.
- 2025-26: Subsidy cap retained at ₹1,000/month; verification cycle tightened to prevent duplicate claims.
Common rejection reasons
- Consumer-number mismatch: electricity consumer number not linked to farmer Aadhaar; visit DISCOM office to update.
- IT-payer in past 3 years: same exclusion logic as PM-KISAN; cross-verified with ITR database.
- Government employee/pensioner: ineligible category.
- Unmetered pump: only metered connections qualify; flat-rate connections receive other subsidy schemes.
- Aadhaar — bank seeding failure: while the subsidy reduces the bill directly, NPCI seeding still required for refund cases.
Grievance: DISCOM Divisional Engineer → DISCOM Chief Engineer → Rajasthan Energy Department → Rajasthan Sampark grievance helpline.
Coverage statistics
Per Rajasthan Energy Department data, MKMUY covers lakhs of metered agricultural connections each year; annual outlay is around ₹750 crore. Maximum benefit per farmer is ₹12,000/year (₹1,000/month × 12). Exact district-wise figures are published in Rajasthan Vidhan Sabha replies and DISCOM annual reports.
How MKMUY stacks with other schemes
MKMUY is a power-cost layer. PM-KUSUM provides the longer-term solarisation path — solar pumps (Component B) or grid-connected pump solarisation (Component C IPS / FLS) eliminate electricity bill exposure altogether. PM-KISAN provides national income support; KCC-MISS at 4 % effective rate finances inputs. PMFBY covers crop insurance. Atal Bhujal Yojana (Rajasthan is a priority ABHY state) incentivises GP-level demand-side water management — pairs with MKMUY's metered-power model. NMEO-Oilseeds and NFSM cover productivity in Rajasthan's major oilseed and pulse belts.
Related
- PM-KUSUM — solarisation pathway.
- Rajasthan state guide.