Electricity bill totalling Rs 482 crore are pending on various departments of the State Government, out of which the highest amount of Rs 219 crore is yet to be paid by the Housing and Urban Development Department.
Expressing displeasure with the departments over the huge amounts of unpaid electricity bills, Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi has directed them to foot the bills by March-end.
Reviewing the rural electrification at a meeting with the Collectors through videoconferencing on Wednesday, Padhi suggested them to cooperate with the departments in payment of the pending electricity bills.
However, he asked the Collectors not to disconnect the power connection to drinking water sources. He directed them to make the transformers functional within 48 hours of becoming defunct.
Padhi also directed the authorities to complete the rural electrification work in 847 villages by May this year. The Government is targeting to provide electricity connection to all the hamlets by May 2018 and houses by May 2019 across the State.
Notably, the School & Mass Education Department owes Rs 31 crore of electricity dues to the Government while Rs 26 crore is pending with the Rural Development Department, Rs 28 crore with the Panchayati Raj Department and Rs 53 crore with other departments and Public Enterprises (PEs).
Besides, around Rs 3,000 crore worth of electricity bill is pending with general consumers across the State.