Punjab Government Bans Power Cuts Over Erroneous Bills

The Government of Punjab has prohibited the disconnection of electricity services for consumers who have not paid inflated or erroneous bills. This directive ensures that no action is taken against individuals labeled as defaulters until the state's billing system is fully rectified.

The order follows a surge of consumer complaints regarding abnormally high charges. The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited attributed these errors to a combination of technical and labor issues, specifically a recent strike by meter readers and the migration of billing data from SAP and Non-SAP systems to an Oracle-based system. These disruptions led the utility to bill some consumers on an average or assumptive basis rather than actual usage.