MULUGU: After a woman from Premnagar in Mulugu was charged with a electricity bill of Rs.1,43,136, Divisional Engineer K Raju on Wednesday clarified that the high bill was due to a defective electricity meter.
K Pramila, who has been living in a rented house in Premnagar for eight months had no pending dues on the electricity service connection. She said the family used only a television, two ceiling fans and two LED bulbs. However he received a electricity bill of Rs 1,43,136.
In reponse to the report by The New Indian Express, 'The story "Meter glitch leaves woman with Rs 1.43L power bill" published on Wednesday, Mulugu electricity officials clarified the faulty meter was reason for the high bill.
Mulugu Divisional Engineer K. Raju said that a revised bill was issued after the actual consumption and the average consumption of the previous months were taken into consideration. The revised bill amount is Rs. 12,534.
Raju added that Pramila's electricity service does not fall under the Gruha Jyothi Scheme (Non-Gruha Jyothi Service). The benefit of free electricity under the Gruha Jyothi Scheme is not applicable to this service.
"We advised the Pramila to approach the concerned MPDO authorities for the benefit of the Gruha Jyothi Scheme eligibility.
Therefore, the Rs.1.43 lakh bill mentioned in the news report was only a temporary excess bill caused by the defective meter. After verification and reassessment, the bill was revised to Rs.12,534," said Raju.
