Karnataka shocker: Lone elderly woman gets Rs 1.03 lakh electricity bill

An elderly woman was shocked after she received an electricity bill of over Rs 1 lakh. The woman contended that she uses only two lights in her house.

Koppala (Karnataka): The Congress government in Karnataka has announced the 'Griha Jyoti' scheme in the state, where every household will get 200 units of free electricity per month. Application submission has started from June 18 to get the benefits of the scheme. However, in a shocking incident, an elderly woman in the Koppal district received an electricity bill of Rs 1.03 lakh.

Girijamma, a resident of Koppala's Bhagyanagar, is distraught after seeing the power bill. She contended that only two lights are there in her house. The elderly woman burst into tears after she received the electricity bill.

Earlier, Girijamma's house was under the 'Bhagya Jyothi' scheme. Earlier, the bill was only Rs 70 to 80. Six months ago, the GESCOM staff installed a new meter in her residence, after which the bill amount increased. Now, in just 6 months, the electricity bill is more than Rs 1 lakh, Girijamma said.

The 'Bhagya Jyoti Yojana' was a free electricity scheme implemented by the previous BJP-led government for the poor. Only 40 units of free electricity were allowed under this scheme. Also, if additional units were consumed, the bill has to be paid for it.

''There are only two bulbs in the small tin-shed hut where I reside. Also, I don't use a mixer. I grind the spices. This bill has come after the installation of the new meter. How can I pay such a huge bill?" Girijamma asked.

Koppal GESCOM's Executive Engineer Rajesh visited Girijamma's house in Bhagyanagar and reassured her that there is no need to pay the bill.'' We will revise the bill, this is Bhagya Jyoti electricity connection. So much electricity is not used. Our staff and bill collector are careless. Action will be taken against the culprits. If there are any such cases if the public brings them to our attention, we will look into them,'' Rajesh said.

A few days ago, a house in Ullal of Dakshina Kannada district also received an electricity bill of Rs 7 lakh. The house owners were upset when they saw the bill. Sadashiva Acharya, a resident of Ullalabil, had received such an electricity bill. Later the officials corrected their mistake.