Gruha Jyoti Scheme: Important news has come for Bangalore residents. Domestic consumers who have crossed the limit of free electricity may have to pay a new deposit amount. Consumers who have qualified for free electricity under the Gruha Jyoti scheme, that is, they have exceeded 10 or more units from their allotted units, will now have to pay an additional security deposit (ASD).
You will have to pay Rs 1,000 to Rs 25,000
State power supply companies have determined the additional usage and included ASD in July electricity bills. This will require every domestic consumer to pay an additional deposit ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 25,000. But discussions are underway on refunding interest earned on deposits submitted earlier.
According to an official, power supply companies will now calculate the average power consumption over 12 months from consumers with electricity connections to determine the security deposit based on the amount of two months’ bill.
Under the Griha Jyoti Yojana, the government has initially considered the average annual power consumption and provided an additional 10 units of free electricity per month. But consumers who have used this additional free power will now have to pay an additional security deposit (ASD).
The official gave this information
The official also said that power supply companies earlier used to take a security deposit equal to three months’ bill, but it was reduced to two months’ bill amount to reduce the financial burden on low-income consumers.
With the new execution, the security deposit applies to domestic consumers as well as industrial and commercial electricity users. Interest on the deposit amount will be adjusted in the final bill amount of the respective year as part of a regular process.
According to the energy department, the additional security deposit (ASD) is determined based on the electricity demand of new customers. At the beginning of the next financial year, BESCOM (Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited) reviews the average consumption of the previous year to decide whether the customer needs to pay an additional security deposit or get a refund if their demand is low.
Interest on additional security deposit (IOD – Deposit on Interest) will be credited to the customer’s account at the end of the first quarter of the new financial year.
Calculated on annual average electricity consumption
There is no tax or additional charge on additional security deposit. It is calculated based on the customer’s annual average electricity consumption.
Customers will get interest on this deposit (IOD) at the end of the financial year. There is no reason to get a higher than normal electricity bill in June.
If your bill under the Griha Jyoti Yojana has a negative amount, it represents interest on your additional security deposit provided by BESCOM.
This amount will be adjusted in future electricity charges if the consumer gets a net bill or a non-zero bill.
Customers are not required to pay this negative amount (shown as interest on IOD deposited below the zero bill).
Notices are issued by the AEE of the concerned subdivision office, which are computer generated. The newly determined security deposit can be paid online through the BESCOM Mitra mobile app or the official BESCOM website.
Government subsidy is available for Griha Jyoti Yojana
BESCOM receives government subsidy only for Krishi IP Set and Griha Jyoti Yojana, which is paid by the government on behalf of the consumers.
The responsibility of informing the customers about ASD (Additional Security Deposit) lies with the concerned subdivisions- Energy Department. All expenses of BESCOM will be met from the electricity charges collected from the consumers. For any queries regarding ASD, customers can call BESCOM’s 24×7 helpline 1912 and talk about this scheme.
