Smart meters shock consumers in Varanasi, causing outrage over exorbitant electricity bills

News Topical, Digital Desk : Consumers are upset with the exorbitant electricity bills they are receiving after the installation of prepaid smart meters by the electricity department. While consumers used to pay between ₹800 and ₹1500 per month, now, after the installation of prepaid smart meters, some consumers are receiving bills of ₹50,000 and others of ₹10,000 per month.

After receiving a bill of a higher amount, the electricity is automatically cut off, due to which the consumers are getting troubled in the summer season and are forced to visit the electricity office. From morning till evening, troubled consumers are reaching the electricity substation located at Bada Lalpur and trying to get a solution to the problem. A similar case was seen in the Sarasuli area where many consumers told about being sent exorbitant electricity bills after the installation of smart meters.

Sarasauli resident Buchchan Devi said that her connection number is 1175 911000. She said that earlier her electricity bill used to be Rs 900, Rs 1500 or even Rs 3000 per month if she consumed more during summer season, but on 18 February 2026, a prepaid smart electricity meter was installed by the Electricity Department. When my son Adarsh ​​went to deposit the electricity bill on 1 March, he was told that Rs 5217 is still your advance in the Electricity Department, hence there is no need to deposit the electricity bill.

Then, on April 9, 2026, I received a message on my mobile phone regarding an outstanding electricity bill of ₹50,968. Before we could understand anything, the electricity supply to our house was cut off on April 10. She explained that she had a heart condition and the power outage was causing distress to the entire family. "I don't know how a ₹50,000 bill arrived within two months, even though we don't have an air conditioner," she said.

The consumer's son, Adarsh ​​Gupta, said that he went to the sub-centre office of the electricity department located at Bada Lalpur regarding this problem, but the officials sitting there did not solve his problem, instead they said that you will have to pay a bill of Rs 50,968 only then your electricity will come.

Munna Sonkar, a vegetable vendor from Sarasuli, said his electricity connection was in his father's name, Bechu Ram Sonkar. He said that for some reason, he was unable to pay his outstanding electricity bill of 2423 rupees from September 2025 to January 2026. He said that the electricity department installed a prepaid smart meter outside his house on February 18th and left.

When I got a new bill from the electricity department on April 9, I came to know that the electricity bill of the house has become Rs 54,950, which is absolutely wrong. The electricity department is not paying attention to our problem. How much money can I get from selling vegetables on the footpath?

Poonam Sonkar, a resident of Sarasuli, said she lives with her brother in a one-room house. Her mother passed away two months ago due to cancer, and her father passed away several years ago. My brother and I manage all the household expenses and use a fan, a bulb, and a cooler during the summer.

Told that the electricity connection of my house is in the name of my mother late Bhagirathi Devi. Told that on 24 February he had deposited the electricity bill of Rs. 978. On 25 February 2026, the electricity department installed a prepaid smart meter outside my house. But after almost a month, on 30 March, an electricity bill of Rs. 10,571 was sent, due to which my brother and I are worried. Told that on reaching the sub-centre located at Bada Lalpur, the officials are not paying attention to our words, they say that the bill that has come will have to be paid.
What did the subdivision officer say - Vineet Kumar Shukla, subdivision officer of Bada Lalpur Electricity Substation, said that due to non-communication in the old meter of such consumers, the store reading which was left, when the electricity bill of the new meter of those consumers was made, the store reading was added, hence the consumers are receiving such bills.

He explained that if your balance remains negative, your power will be disconnected. The SDO stated that to avoid power disconnection, consumers are urged to download the electricity department's app to their mobile phones, which will keep them updated on their balance and advance payments.

He told that there are three types of apps of the electricity department in which

• UPPCL Consumer App: Basic information can be obtained through this.
• UPPCL Smart Consumer App
• Consumers can download the Urjaat app onto their mobile phones. This will allow them to receive all information about the electricity department, including their electricity bills, and avoid any inconvenience. He explained that consumers visiting the substation are also being made aware by downloading the three electricity department apps onto their mobile phones.

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