KARACHI – Power consumers across the city have started receiving inflated electricity bills after the installation of new meters by the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC), on claims of the previous ones being faulty, slow, or tampered, etc.
The consumers complain that the newly-installed meters are moving fast and causing the already poverty-stricken people of the city to bear additional charges.
The KESC is replacing the existing meters across the metropolis with new single-phase or three-phase electro-mechanical meters purchased from local companies. After the change of meters, consumers complain that the number of consumed electricity units has increased by 50 to 200 units, charging them additional Rs 500 to Rs 5,000.
“Even though we have reduced the use of electricity by switching off many appliances, the bill received shows continuous hikes every month,” a consumer from Gulistan-e-Jauhar told Pakistan Today.
Many consumers from different parts of the city like Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Soldier Bazaar, Nazimabad, Korangi, Malir and Liaqatabad also complain that their electricity bills have increased after the change in meters.
Recently, KESC CEO Tabish Gauhar, while talking to Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry members, had claimed that as the existing meters have slowed down due to technical reasons, they have been de-rated for being in use for a long time and the newly-installed meters are running at the actual pace. The new meters are purchased after complete scrutiny through proper procedures and fully tested before being installed at the consumers’ location.
Gauhar had also said the company would soon change the meters installed at factories and industries with digital ones.
Meanwhile, sources claim that the KESC is harassing consumers by removing even those meters that are without any fault to generate additional revenue only.
A large number of meters were declared tampered or faulty by the company while forcing the consumer to make payments to change the meter with an estimated tariff. The consumer has to pay not only for the new meter but also the charges under different heads like meter-changing service and revised security fees.
The security charges for a new connection have also been revised by the NEPRA, ranging from Rs 5,000 to over Rs 30,000 according to the sanctioned power load of the connection.
It is worth mentioning that the revenue protection department and the theft deduction cell of KESC have removed a large number of meters through different inspection teams comprising four to five members. The teams are also issuing charge sheets against the customers and sending their meters to the KESC’s faulty meter repairing department.
