Gohana, Haryana
A ‘paan’ seller here got the shock of his life after he received an electricity bill of Rs1322.9 million (Dh79.5 million) this Diwali, which the Haryana power utility Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) described as a ‘blunder’ caused due to technical problem in its online billing software system.
Admitting the ‘goof-up’, UHBVN has found that the actual electricity bill of paan seller Rajesh Chautala was Rs1,668 for two months till October 14 with the consumption of 232 units.
“It was a shock for me when I saw the electricity bill mentioning the amount Rs1322.9 million,” Chautala said, adding that his electricity bill was usually up to Rs900.
The paan (betel leaf) seller said he used only a fan and a bulb at his shop in Gohana town of Sonipat district and was shocked with the bill when his consumption was so “low”.
“There appears to be some problem in the newly-launched online billing software system which could have led to the issuing of such a big amount. We have started an inquiry into this incident,” a senior UHBVN official told PTI.
UHBVN had “wrongly” shown a consumption of 19 crore energy units by Chautala, resulting in the massive bill. Chautala’s actual bill came to Rs1,668.
“We have rectified the bill which will be delivered to him [Chautala],” the officer said.
