In Short:
- A man in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, received a shockingly high electricity bill.
- The bill amounted to over Rs 52 lakh.
- Officials believe the error may be due to old meter readings being transferred to new meters and have promised to rectify it.
A resident of Muzaffarpur, Bihar, Harishankar Maniyari, who works as a Medical Representative (MR), was stunned when he received an electricity bill for over Rs 52 lakh on June 27.
The issue came to light when Maniyari's son discovered that the power to their home had been disconnected. In response, Maniyari quickly recharged their electricity account with Rs 500, but the power remained off. When he checked the bill, he found the enormous outstanding amount.
Desperate and facing a difficult situation, Maniyari went to the local electricity office to file a complaint. He explained to the media, "On June 27, my home's power was disconnected.
My son informed me about it, and I immediately recharged our electricity account with Rs 500, but the power was not restored. Then, I downloaded the bill and saw an outstanding amount of over Rs 52 lakh."
"I met with the power department's junior engineer regarding this issue, but our electricity still hasn't been restored. I have always paid my bills on time. There is also a patient at home, and despite this, our electricity has not been restored," Maniyari added.
Addressing the situation, the power department's executive engineer, Shravan Kumar Thakur, explained that they are currently installing smart meters in Muzaffarpur. He suggested that the issue might have arisen from old meter readings being transferred to the new smart meter.
"I believe there was an error in the bill, and it will be corrected. We are also working on developing a system where any suspicious electricity bill will first be reviewed by the department before being sent out," Thakur stated in response to queries about Maniyari's inflated bill.