The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has approved a provision that will allow defaulters to pay outstanding electricity dues in instalments in the area.
The civic body, in its council meeting held here, also approved a proposal for procurement of 55 MW solar power.
During a press conference, NDMC vice chairman Satish Upadhyay said the civic body has been consistently receiving grievances from consumers in the area, expressing their inability to pay accumulated electricity and water bills in full due to various reasons such as business losses, closures and medical issues.
Currently, NDMC does not allow payment in installments, citing the absence of specific rules or instructions on this matter, he said.
However, the council has accorded approval to a proposal in which consumers, desirous of making payment of accumulated electricity dues in installments, shall make an application to the concerned department and based on the demonstrated financial condition of the consumer, the department will approve the request, subject to some conditions.
These conditions mandate that the installment shall be allowed only in two or three parts and 50 per cent of the accumulated electricity dues shall be required to be paid upfront. The balance 50 per cent shall be payable in maximum two installments, the percentage of which may be decided by the department.
“Late payment surcharge as per applicable rates shall continue to be charged on the delayed payment. The consumer shall pay the current bill along with above installments. This facility of paying in installments shall be allowed only once in a period of five years,” he said.
According to an official, there are a total of 60,000 power consumers in NDMC. Of these, there are 6,998 private defaulters who have dues of Rs 50,000 and above which amounts to Rs 128.13 crore. The official said the scheme will kick in from April 1.
“We sought an approval from the DERC for bringing this scheme. After its approval, the scheme was brought before the council and subsequently has been approved,” he added.
The NDMC also passed a resolution to vacate Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s seat in the council.
NDMC member Kuljeet Chahal said the law department of NDMC will give their advice on the issue. There was no immediate reaction from the Delhi government or AAP on the issue.
The peak demand of NDMC is around 400 MW.