The power bills for the month of June in Mumbai are likely to be higher than the previous months for many consumers. Electricity firms such as Adani Electricity have confirmed that this will be due to bills being based on actual meter ratings for the first time since the lockdown began.
With the outbreak of the coronavirus, meter readings were discontinued by all electricity firms and bills in the months of March-May were based on the average bills put out in the months of December-February. According to the officials, consumption is usually lower in the months of winter and in summer. Therefore, power bills can appear to be higher this month.
The consumers can expect the bills to be on the higher side as the bills for the last few months were computed on an average of the preceding months. The industry officials have stated that the power consumption is higher in the months of April and May as people have utilized more power as a consequence of the lockdown. However, meter-readings in containment zones are said to be avoided.
The Maharashtra government had earlier announced to give a three-month electricity duty waiver to small businesses. After the announcement by the Centre to roll out economic packages for the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Maharashtra, India’s financial capital, is planning to roll out further measures to protect and restore the sector in the state.
The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray allegedly planned to announce a three-month waiver of fixed monthly electricity charges payable by the MSMEs to repair the economic damage caused by the extended lockdown. The state currently has 17 lakh registered MSME’s that provide direct and indirect employment to nearly 1.5 crore people. Of this, the manufacturing sector, among the worst hit by the lockdown, alone accounts for six lakh units.
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