Ahead of the Assembly elections in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday said that up to 125 units of electricity will be free for consumers in the state.

The change will be applicable from the July bill, Kumar said, adding that the decision will benefit 1.6 crore families.

Bihar is expected to head to the Assembly polls in October or November.

The Janata Dal (United) leader also said that in the next three years, solar power plants will be installed on rooftops of all domestic consumers, with their consent, or at nearby public places.

The state government will bear the expense of installing solar power plants for extremely poor families under the Kutir Jyoti scheme and provide “appropriate support” for others, Kumar said.

This will make up to 10,000 MW of solar energy available in the state in the next three years, he added.

In September, Opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav promised to make the consumption of up to 200 units of electricity free to consumers if his Rashtriya Janata Dal was voted to power in the Assembly polls.

Following Kumar’s announcement on Thursday, RJD spokesperson Shakti Singh Yadav was quoted as saying by The Hindu that the chief minister had been forced to take the decision under pressure after Tejashwi Yadav promised 200 free units of electricity.

On July 8, the state Cabinet made domicile status mandatory for candidates seeking to access the 35% reservation granted to women in state government jobs. Until now, women who are not residents of Bihar could access the quota in government jobs.

He had also announced the formation of a Bihar Youth Commission, a statutory body for providing employment opportunities to the state’s residents.

On June 21, the JD(U)-Bharatiya Janata Party government had also announced that the state’s monthly social security pension for the elderly, differently-abled and widows would be increased to Rs 1,100 from Rs 400, starting July.

The enhanced pension will benefit more than 1.09 crore persons, said the chief minister, adding that the amount would be credited to the bank accounts of all beneficiaries by the tenth of each month.

The announcement had come months after Tejashwi Yadav in March promised to increase the monthly pension to Rs 1,500 under the Mai-Bahin Samman Yojna if RJD wins the polls.