Despite being deprived of power supply under Rajiv Gandhi Gramya Vidyut Yojana, 40 families of the Maoist-infested village of Kotaguda under Tentulipadar panchayat of Naryanpatna block have been getting electricity bills from SOUTHCO for the last two months.
After the State Government decided to cover the village under the Yojana, SOUTHCO installed electric poles in November last year.
However, no electrical meters and wires were put up in the households and subsequently, the project work was abruptly stopped. But much to the surprise of villagers, they have been getting electricity bills from SOUTHCO from September with the bill amount ranging between Rs 600 and Rs 700 each. Even though villagers alleged fraud by the distcom officials, SOUTHCO is yet to inquire into the allegations.
SOUTHCO executive engineer PK Mishra said the electricity bills might have been generated wrongly. “We will inquire into the matter,” he said.
Meanwhile, villagers have apprised the District Collector Sachin Jadhav about lack of electricity in Kotaguda, who has assured them that the electrification work will resume soon.