A resident of Madariganj in Jamalpur has been issued an electricity bill of Tk 692 for August even though the new meter in question has neither been installed nor connected to the power supply. The unexpected bill has left the customer, Sri Nimai Chandra Sarker, perplexed and raised questions over the accuracy of the electricity billing process and the monitoring of new connections.
The incident occurred in the Tegharia Bazar area of Charpakerdah Union in Madariganj upazila.
According to Nimai Chandra Sarker, his home already has four electricity meters—two for residential use and two for commercial purposes. He subsequently applied for another meter and a new electricity connection. Although preparations were made for the additional connection, the new meter had not been installed and the electricity supply had not been activated when a bill of Tk 692 was issued in his name.
The discrepancy became apparent when he received the billing documents. On Friday, 4 September, an inspection of the premises found four existing meters at the house. A wiring board had also been prepared for the proposed new meter. However, there was no newly installed meter corresponding to the additional bill.
Despite this, five electricity bills had reportedly been issued in Nimai’s name. One of them related to the proposed new meter and showed a charge of Tk 692 for August.
The incident has caused considerable surprise among local residents. They have questioned how an electricity consumption bill could have been generated for a connection that had not yet been installed or activated. They have called for the matter to be investigated and for appropriate action to be taken if negligence or procedural errors are found.
The issue also highlights the importance of ensuring that billing records accurately correspond with the status of individual connections. For a new connection, information such as meter installation, activation and consumption needs to be properly reflected in the billing system. Any mismatch can result in customers being charged for electricity they have not actually used and can create unnecessary disputes over payment.
Mokhlesur Rahman, in-charge of the Tegharia complaint centre, said the bill had been prepared after discussions with Nimai Sarker. However, when asked whether a bill could legitimately be generated without a meter or active connection, he acknowledged that the incident was a mistake.
Abu Saleh Md Naim, assistant general manager for operation and maintenance at the Madariganj zonal office of Jamalpur Palli Bidyut Samity, attributed the problem to a change in the software system. He did not, however, provide a specific explanation as to how a bill could be generated for a connection where the meter had not yet been installed and electricity supply had not begun.
Syeda Farzana Yasmin, deputy general manager of the same zonal office, also said she could not provide a clear explanation. She said she was unaware of how a bill could be issued without a meter or connection and advised that the matter be discussed with the officials responsible for overseeing the process.
The case has therefore left unanswered questions about where the billing error occurred and whether the customer’s account was incorrectly activated in the system. For Nimai Chandra Sarker, the immediate concern is straightforward: a bill has arrived for a connection from which, according to the information available, no electricity had yet been supplied.
Local residents have urged the authorities to verify the customer’s records, correct the disputed bill and identify the source of the error so that similar incidents do not cause inconvenience to other electricity consumers.
