Nearly 60 Pc Of Tripura's 9 Lakh Power Consumers Default On Bills: Officials

(MENAFN- IANS) Agartala, Feb 6 (IANS) Despite repeated appeals by the government and the power utility, nearly 60 per cent of Tripura's around nine lakh electricity consumers have not been paying their monthly power bills for several years, officials of the Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) said on Friday.

A senior TSECL official said that only about 4.32 lakh consumers -- largely from urban and town areas -- regularly pay their electricity bills to the state-owned corporation.

The persistent non-payment has resulted in accumulated electricity arrears exceeding Rs 490 crore so far.

Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath has repeatedly urged consumers at various TSECL programmes and public events to clear their dues on time.

“A section of consumers has, at times, attacked TSECL personnel, including engineers and linemen, when they attempted to disconnect power supply to defaulters,” the official said.

Officials said that the growing reluctance among a section of consumers to pay electricity bills has emerged as a major challenge to maintaining uninterrupted power supply across the state.

Managing Director of TSECL, Biswajit Basu, said that large-scale non-payment of dues is disrupting administrative operations and posing serious risks to power supply, infrastructure maintenance and future development.

He appealed to consumers for cooperation, stressing that sustaining and strengthening the power service system would be extremely difficult without public support.

According to officials, several areas under the Amarpur Electrical Sub-Division in Gomati district have witnessed a persistent trend of consumers demanding uninterrupted power supply despite accumulating unpaid bills over a long period.

Recently, consumers from Kalamati, Bibaram Para, Gatiram Para, Sombajoy Para and Hatiray Para reportedly informed officials that they were unable to clear their electricity dues.

Following prolonged non-payment, the corporation initiated steps to disconnect power supply in these areas. This triggered protests by a section of residents, who blocked roads and demanded restoration of electricity.

Protesters claimed that paying electricity bills was beyond their financial capacity but insisted that power supply must continue.

The situation eased after the intervention of the district administration, following which residents submitted written assurances to clear their pending dues by February 15. Based on these assurances, electricity supply was restored.

However, officials expressed concern that continuation of such tendencies could seriously affect the sustainability of power services in the future.

Official data shows that electricity arrears in these five areas alone have crossed Rs 38 lakh.

TSECL officials described the overall billing performance under the Amarpur Electrical Division as alarming.

As of January 31, 2026, only 4,310 out of 15,067 registered consumers in the Amarpur Sub-Division had paid their bills, reflecting a compliance rate of just 28 per cent.

In Jatanbari, only 1,729 out of 10,418 consumers paid their dues, a payment rate of 16 per cent.

In Karbook, 1,644 out of 7,617 consumers cleared their bills, while in Ompi, 2,398 out of 9,098 consumers made payments, indicating compliance rates of 21 per cent and 26 per cent, respectively.

Overall, the bill payment rate across all four subdivisions under the Amarpur Division stands at only 23 per cent, which officials termed financially unsustainable.

Basu said that electricity is a capital-intensive essential service requiring significant financial resources for power procurement, generation, maintenance, emergency repairs and infrastructure expansion.

Failure to pay bills on time, he said, hampers both day-to-day operations and long-term modernisation efforts.

He underlined that electricity supply is integral to education, healthcare, households and commercial activities, and any disruption could have wide-ranging social and economic consequences.

While a section of responsible consumers regularly clears dues, the growing number of defaulters demanding uninterrupted services poses long-term risks to the power sector.

The corporation warned that deterioration in the financial health of the power distribution system could affect timely maintenance, emergency response and capacity enhancement projects required to meet rising electricity demand across the state.

In view of the situation, TSECL has urged all consumers to pay their bills regularly and cooperate in strengthening the power service system.

Officials emphasised that electricity supply is a shared responsibility between the service provider and consumers, and sustained non-payment could make reliable and improved electricity services increasingly difficult to ensure.

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