THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) has doled out subsidies worth Rs 150.223 crore to consumers by adjusting the additional power bill issued to them from April 20 to June 19.
Following complaints that a large section of consumers was asked to pay an exorbitant amount for the energy they used during the lockdown as a result of the delay in carrying out meter reading on consumer premises, the state government had asked the board to give subsidy up to 50% on the excess
amount.
As per the electricity act, the state government is supposed to pay the power utility the subsidy announced by the government. However, such payments are often done through book adjustments against the electricity duty the board owes to the government.
The board sources confirm that close to 70 lakh domestic consumers had benefited from the subsidy.
