Villagers resent flat rate electricity bills, demand metering

Excelsior Correspondent

Villagers apprising CE PDD Shehnaz Goni about their grievances in a meeting at Jammu.
Villagers apprising CE PDD Shehnaz Goni about their grievances in a meeting at Jammu.

JAMMU, May 19: A deputation of people from different villages called on Chief Engineer Electrical,  Shehnaz Goni and expressed  great resentment against issuing of flat rate electricity bills without  giving any notice and even to the people whose meters were properly working.
The villagers from  Bain Bajalta, Tutein Di Khui, Aithem, Kana Chadgal, Sarah, Pargalta, Sandi, Dhoon etc were  led by State general secretary of  Bahujan  Samaj Party Rakesh Wazir, who explained that the PDD issued flat rate electricity bills for not installing new meters  out of their own resources.
Mr Wazir said that  the villagers have no objection in  installation of meters but those should be installed by the department on the pattern of Jammu city and Kashmir and the poor people should not be forced to buy the meters on their own. The villagers alleged that different yard sticks were being adopted by the department in different areas in this connection. Shehnaz Goni  listened to the deputation patiently and gave on spot instructions that  the people whose meters were  working properly, their flat rate bills should be taken back and the people whose meters were  not functional, be given time to purchase the meters. She  assured a mechanism by which the flat rate bills will be taken back or adjusted in their future bills.
The deputation comprised of Sarpanch Kirpal Singh, Sarpanch Balwant Singh, Naib Sarpanch RC Sharma, Madan Lal, Dhani Ram, Pritam Singh, Mohinder Singh, Raj Singh  and others.