Now, Chandigarh residents to get electricity bills in Hindi, English
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, August 26
Starting this month, the city residents will receive their electricity bills in a new and simplified format. The bills will now be bilingual, featuring text in both Hindi and English. The UT Engineering Department has revamped the bill to make it more user-friendly, removing unnecessary information and adding useful details.
Key changes include the addition of meter status, the last payment date and the amount paid. The back of the bill now includes guidelines and a notice under Section 56 of the Electricity Act, 2003, outlining potential actions if the bill is not paid on time. The bill also provides comprehensive information on payment methods, contact centres across Chandigarh and details on electricity rates, duties, taxes and cess to help residents calculate their bills.
A senior officer stated that the new format was aimed at making electricity bills easier to understand, with all information now clearly presented in both Hindi and English.
From this month, residents will have to pay more for power after the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) revised the fixed and power tariff in different domestic and commercial categories for the financial year 2024-25. The revised tariff are applicable from August 1.
On an average, the commission had approved an increase of the 9.40% in power tariff. The Electricity Department had proposed an average increase of nearly 19.44% in the existing power tariff of all categories. According to the order, in the domestic category, the JERC approved a hike of fixed charge from Rs 15 to 30 per month.
In the slab of 0-150 kWh (unit), the tariff per unit will continue to remain Rs 2.75. But in the slab of 151-400 kWh per month, the tariff will increase from Rs 4.25 per unit to Rs 4.80 per unit.
Above 400 kWh per month, the tariff approved is from Rs 4.65 per kWh to Rs 5.40 per unit. In the HT domestic category, the tariff will increase from Rs 4.30 per unit to Rs 4.90 per unit.
For commercial and non-residential building category, the major tariff change is in the slab above 400 kWh per month where the tariff has been approved from Rs 5 per unit to Rs 5.90 per unit. As per the proposal put up by UT, in the domestic category, the department had proposed a hike in fixed charge from Rs 15 per month to Rs 40 per month.
The department had proposed a hike from Rs 4.25 to Rs 4.90 per unit in the slab of 151-400 units and an increase from Rs 4.65 to Rs 5.50 in the slab 401 units and above. In the domestic high tension category, hike from Rs 4.30 to Rs 5 per unit was proposed.
User-friendly format
Key changes include the addition of meter status, the last payment date and the amount paid. The back of the bill now includes guidelines and a notice under Section 56 of the Electricity Act, 2003, outlining potential actions if the bill is not paid on time. The bill also provides comprehensive information on payment methods, contact centres across Chandigarh and details on electricity rates, duties, taxes and cess to help residents calculate their bills.
