Downtown residents stage protest against inflated electricity bills

Srinagar, Apr 23:  Amid growing power crisis in the summer capital, scores of residents from various area of Downtown today staged protest against inflated electricity bills amid unscheduled power cuts.

Locals from various areas of Downtown assembled at Nawa Kadal to register their protest against KPDCL.

The residents said that scores of localities in Downtown have again received inflated bills that the poor locality cannot afford. They said that although the power supply has been reduced to a few hours only, they had received inflated bills multiple times over the past few months. The aggrieved said that the consumers from Nawa Kadal, Nowhatta, Jamalatta, Kawdara, Bulbul Lanker, Jamia Masjid, Rajouri Kadal, and adjoining areas have been suffering due to inflated bills as the power supply is nowhere to be seen.

“Most of our localities comprise people who are daily wagers and can hardly feed themselves. Amid such uncertainty, we have received inflated flat-rate bills, and this is not the first time. In the recent past, the bills were hiked to around Rs 900, then to Rs 1100, and later to Rs 1500. If that was not enough, we were shocked to see that the bills have been again hiked, and now we are receiving Rs 1820 per month. We are all labourers and doing menial jobs, how can we afford such hiked bills,” said Bashir Ahmad, an aggrieved local from Downtown.

The locals said that amid power cuts, many patients on oxygen support are suffering. They said their children’s studies and other household work have been affected.

“We cannot afford even an inverter. We have been pushed to use candles and carry out our work under candlelight. Now, amid the inflated bills, we are left in lurch. We have been reaching out to officials, but no one is listening. Here are some families that are so poor that welfare committees are supporting them financially. Can such people pay around Rs 2000 of power bill per month?” asked another aggrieved.

The locals had blocked Nawa Kadal road and demanded that the inflated bills be rolled back. They said that the administration had not provided any respite for the poor sections of society.

“I live in two rooms with my family and use two electric lamps. We can’t even afford heavy gadgets that consume electricity. I’m also getting the same inflated bills. This is injustice,” said a local while displaying their electricity bills.

The locals said that as authorities are investing millions of rupees in the Smart City project, the downtown residents are craving basic amenities. They appealed to the LG administration to look into the issue so that they wouldn’t suffer.

Executive Engineer KPDCL Lenin Kumar Kundu said that officials hike bills after proper assessment. He said that whenever consumption increases they accordingly review the bills.

"All our concerned officials check the usage and register the load accordingly. Consumers cannot use certain loads and pay less than that. We don't increase bills while sitting in the office. Proper procedure is followed in this regard" he said. On power cuts, he said the issue is overall and it is all depends on the supply and demand.