After drawing up a flak for a steep increase in power bills, the Kerala Government announced on Thursday a slew of subsidy packages for domestic consumers for the extra bill they received during the COVID-19 lockdown period.
It is estimated that the Electricity Board will incur an additional liability of Rs 200 crore by providing this subsidy to approximately 90 lakh domestic consumers.
During the shutdown period, the state government has been under attack from various quarters over a surge in electricity bills.
“Based on the complaints about huge bills, the government instructed the Electricity Board to look into the billing complaints and rectify any errors.
The Board has therefore decided to give ample time to make payments in installments. It has also informed us that there will be no disconnection on account of non-payment of bills, said Chief Minister PinarayiVijayan.
The opposition said that the state government was fleeing the people of the state during the COVID-19 crisis.
“The state government is fleecing the people of the state during the COVID-19 crisis.This is like an unannounced tariff hike,” Chennithala has said, adding that the delayed metre reading due to the lockdown shifted many people to the next higher power tariff slab.
The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) reported, however, that the most recent bill generated was for two and a half months instead of the usual two months.
The Board stated that it had resolved the complaints concerning the bills.
Vijayan, in a press conference, said that electricity consumption normally increased from February to May, but because this time there was a lockout, the power consumption increased drastically as all the family members were in the room.
“As they were unable to take the readings due to the lockdown, consumers have got a consolidated bill for four months resulting in huge amounts.
There has been no change in tariff structure or electricity rates,” Vijayan said.
The Chief Minister announced free electricity for those with a connected charge of less than 500 watts, regardless of the amount of electricity used.
He also said that those who have a connected load of 1,000 watts and use up to 40 units per month will be charged Rs 1.50 per unit.
“For use of up to 50 units per month, 50% of the additional amount charged will be granted as a grant.
For use of up to 100 units per month, 30 per cent of the additional amount charged will be granted as a grant, “Vijayan said.
He also proposed similar discounts for other slab tariffs on energy and said that customers would pay electricity bills in up to five installments.
