Electricity bills give residents a high voltage shock

CHENNAI: The electricity bill this time has given a shock for most customers. Many customers claim they have been charged 3-4 times more than their usual consumption, in the month of June. “Even though the officials failed to take the metre reading in April, I paid my bill,” recalls PR Vijayaraghavan, a former Air India employee. “Now, they have charged me Rs 9,000 for the last four months.”

He claims the electricity board is computing bills for units consumed in four months, based on a table. “They are not taking into account the free units available for consumers,” he rues. “If you are calculating for four months, you should give the consumer 200 free units — 100 per bimonthly cycle as was the case till date. However, they have given only 100 free units for four months.”