Bageshwar hit by inflated power bills; 600 plaints recorded per month

Bageshwar: Mounting electricity bills have triggered concern across Uttarakhand's Bageshwar district, with consumers alleging irregular meter readings and delayed bill generation by the Uttarakhand Power Corporation Ltd (UPCL).The state-run UPCL has fixed four tariff slabs for domestic consumers – Rs 3.65 per unit for 0 to 100 units, Rs 5.25 for 101 to 200 units, Rs 7.15 for 201 to 400 units and Rs 7.80 for consumption above 400 units.Residents, particularly in rural areas, said meter readers have not visited their villages for months, resulting in cumulative billing that pushed households into higher tariff slabs and added significant financial strain on them.Suresh Singh, a resident of Kanda village, said he received a single bill after three months showing 924 units. "We were pushed straight into the top slab. It is impossible to pay such an amount in one go," he said, adding that repeated complaints to authorities had brought no relief.Pushpa Devi, another consumer from Kanda, said her bills earlier ranged between Rs 200 and Rs 250 every two months, but she was now paying close to Rs 1,000 per month. In Kapkot, 70-year-old Govindi Devi, who lives alone on an old-age pension, was recently issued a bill of Rs 30,300. "There is only a bulb in my house. How can I clear such a huge bill?" she asked.An employee of the department, requesting anonymity, said over the last year, more than 600 billing-related complaints were registered every month in Bageshwar district. He said that staff were struggling to address the growing number of complaints. "We are continuously correcting bills, but systemic improvements will take time," he said.Residents from other villages in Bageshwar said they travelled to the district headquarters to seek rectification, spending between Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 on transport and other expenses. Many alleged they were routinely assured that "corrections would reflect in the next bill", but discrepancies persisted.UPCL executive engineer Mohammad Afzaal said cases of excessive billing were being reviewed and revised. However, he did not specify when regular meter readings and a streamlined billing system would be ensured. The department also did not clarify why cumulative billing continued to push consumers into higher slabs.