*Bhagwant Mann Govt Announces Major Relief For Consumers Facing Inflated Electricity Bills*

*63,702 Consumers Affected By Provisional Billing During Meter Readers’ Strike To Get 300-Unit Free Power Benefit: Tarunpreet Singh Sond*

*Billing System Technical Glitches Fixed; Unusually High Bills To Be Checked Before Generation: Tarunpreet Singh Sond*

*Incorrectly Inflated Bills To Be Resolved Within 2 Weeks; Dedicated Helpline To Be Issued Soon: Tarunpreet Singh Sond*

*No Eligible Consumer Will Lose 300-Unit Free Power Benefit Due To Billing Issues: Tarunpreet Singh Sond*

CHANDIGARH; 25th August 2026:In a major relief for electricity consumers, the Bhagwant Mann Government has announced special measures to ensure that no eligible consumer loses the benefit of 300 free units of electricity due to provisional, erroneous or inflated bills. Announcing the measures, Punjab Power Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond said that the free-power benefit would be protected for 63,702 consumers affected by provisional billing during the meter readers’ strike, while every genuine complaint of an incorrectly inflated bill would be resolved within two weeks. A dedicated helpline will also be issued shortly, with a special team of 20 PSPCL personnel already deployed at headquarters to deal with billing-related grievances.

Addressing a press conference, Power Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond stated, “The Bhagwant Mann Government is committed to protecting the interests of every electricity consumer. No eligible family will lose its 300-unit free electricity benefit merely because of a technical, provisional or billing-related error. Our priority is to ensure that every genuine case is corrected promptly, transparently and fairly.”

The Power Minister said that instances of provisional billing had arisen in certain cases between April and July 2026, when regular meter readings could not be obtained in time due to the strike by meter readers. “In such cases, bills were generated on the basis of previous average consumption and were to be reconciled once the actual meter reading became available,” he added.

He clarified that eligible domestic consumers affected by such provisional billing would continue to receive the benefit of 300 units of free electricity per month, subject to the applicable eligibility conditions.

The Power Minister said that a special measure had been undertaken to protect the benefit of eligible consumers affected by provisional-billing-related adjustments. “Out of a total of 78 lakh consumers, only 63,702 consumers received provisional bills for three months,” he added.

Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond stated, “Under the normal billing process, a provisional bill is calculated on the basis of the consumer’s previous average consumption. When the meter is subsequently read, the actual consumption for the intervening period is reconciled through the billing system. For example, if a consumer’s actual consumption over three billing cycles was 250 units, 250 units and 410 units, but the first two bills had been issued provisionally at 250 units each, the subsequent meter reading would show total actual consumption of 910 units. The billing system would then allocate this consumption across the three billing periods, resulting in approximately 303 units per billing period.”

The Power Minister noted, “Such reconciliation is not, in itself, a billing error. The actual consumption remains 910 units, with the system merely allocating that consumption across the relevant billing periods. However, since the free-electricity benefit is available up to 300 units, such reconciliation can result in a consumer receiving a substantially higher bill than expected.”

He pointed out, “As a liberal and consumer-friendly measure, PSPCL has therefore decided that eligible consumers will not lose the benefit of free electricity merely because their consumption was provisionally billed and subsequently reconciled. The applicable benefit of 300 free units will be protected for the relevant provisional billing periods, subject to existing eligibility conditions. This measure will benefit 63,702 consumers whose bills were affected by such provisional-billing reconciliation in recent months.”

The Power Minister said that the Bhagwant Mann Government had also taken note of complaints from consumers regarding unusually high or inflated electricity bills issued in recent months. “Billing-related difficulties had emerged primarily due to two developments during 2026. In January 2026, PSPCL transitioned from the earlier SAP and Non-SAP billing arrangements to the unified Single Billing System. The transition involved migration and integration of a very large volume of consumer and billing data,”

He pointed out, “During this process, certain data-migration and software-related issues were encountered, and in some cases previous meter-reading data was not correctly available in the new system, resulting in errors in the calculation of consumption.”

“The second issue related to the April-July 2026 meter readers’ strike, during which a large number of consumers received provisional bills based on their previous average consumption. Once actual meter readings became available, accumulated consumption had to be reconciled through the billing system,” he noted.

Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond stated, “The combination of the transition to the new billing system and the large-scale issuance and subsequent reconciliation of provisional bills resulted in consumer grievances, including cases where bills appeared substantially higher than a consumer’s normal monthly bill.”

The Power Minister said, “PSPCL has taken several corrective and preventive measures to strengthen the billing system and avoid recurrence of such issues. The PSPCL technical team has examined the data-migration and software-related concerns that emerged during the transition to the unified billing system. The necessary software fixes have been implemented to prevent recurrence of these issues in subsequent billing cycles. Additional safeguards are also being put in place to detect unusual consumption patterns and prevent erroneous bills from being issued to consumers.”

He revealed, “Under the new software-based safeguard, bills showing consumption substantially higher than a consumer’s normal billing pattern will be automatically flagged and withheld from routine generation. Such bills will be generated only after the necessary verification, ensuring that consumers do not face an unexpectedly inflated bill due to a system-related error.”

The Power Minister said that a dedicated helpline number will be issued soon specifically to resolve problems pertaining to electricity bills. “A deadline of 15 days has been set for resolving such grievances. A special team comprising 20 PSPCL personnel has already been deployed at the headquarters for this purpose. PSPCL has strengthened its grievance-redressal mechanism for consumers facing billing difficulties. Complaints will be examined on priority and, wherever an error is established, the necessary correction will be made through the prescribed reconciliation process. Where a bill is found to have been inflated due to an error, the necessary adjustment will be made in the consumer’s subsequent bill or account,” he added.

The Power Minister appealed to consumers who have received unusually high or provisional electricity bills not to panic and to approach PSPCL through the dedicated helpline once it is issued. He assured consumers that genuine grievances would be examined sympathetically and corrected so that technical or system-related errors do not impose an undue financial burden on them.

He said that a show-cause notice has also been issued to the concerned outsourcing company, which would be penalised as per the applicable rules and regulations. “PSPCL has also initiated measures for closer monitoring of meter-reading and billing-related issues, with special attention being given to cases where discrepancies between actual consumption and billed consumption may result in an unusually high bill, so that such cases can be verified and resolved expeditiously,” he added.

*Consumers To Pay Only For Actual Consumption: CMD*

Meanwhile, PSPCL Chairman-cum Managing Director (CMD) Dr. Basant Garg said that PSPCL has already identified the affected cases and is undertaking the necessary reconciliation of provisional bills with actual consumption. He stressed that consumers would ultimately be charged only for the electricity actually consumed and that payments already made would be credited into the accounts of consumers.

Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond reiterated that the Bhagwant Mann Government and PSPCL are committed to providing accurate, transparent and consumer-friendly electricity billing services and ensuring that every eligible beneficiary receives the full benefit of the State Government’s 300-unit free electricity scheme. “The government’s intervention would ensure that genuine consumer grievances are resolved promptly, erroneous bills are corrected through due verification and reconciliation, and systemic safeguards are strengthened so that consumers do not face similar difficulties in future billing cycles,” he added.

===========================================

Punjab Government Group of Ministers assures rice millers of full support ahead of paddy procurement season

Chandigarh, August 25:The Punjab Government led by the Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann is according top priority to the matter of ensuring adequate storage space in the mandis of the State in view of the fast approaching Paddy procurement season.

The Group of Ministers (GoM) comprising Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian, Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak and Water Resources Minister Barinder Kumar Goyal today met various of the rice millers of the State and assured them of total cooperation by the State Government to ensure a successful procurement season.

The GoM appealed to the Union Government to speed up the lifting of rice from the State so as to create more storage space in view of the upcoming Paddy procurement season.

The Group of Ministers said that the rice industry along with the farmers, Arhtiyas and the labourers comprises the backbone of the economic structure of the State and their welfare is uppermost in the mind of the State Government.

Furthermore, many welfare centric measures are in the pipeline such as no District Food Supply Controller (DFSC) can do recovery from the millers without the permission of the Headoffice. Also, a provision would be made in the upcoming

Custom Milling Policy regarding making

transportation payments directly to the sheller owners.

With regard to the other demands such as giving the unloading and grading charges to every miller, Extending the date for registration of new shelters on the portal to September 30th and allotting the paddy for custom milling in the next season to the sheller owners milling 85 percent in the present season, the Group of Ministers assured that the best interests of the rice millers are at the heart of the State Government. Besides, there would be no bias in allotting the paddy for custom milling.

Among others present on the occasion included the Principal Secretary Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Rahul Tewari, Director Varinder Kumar Sharma, AMD PUNGRAIN Kamal Kumar Garg, Additional Directors Dr. Anjuman Bhaskar and Ajayveer Singh Sarao, President Federation of All India Rice Miller Association Tarsem Saini, President Punjab Rice Industry Association Bharat Bhushan Binta, President Rice Millers Association Gian Chand Bhardwaj and President New Punjab Rice Millers Association Balwinder Singh Haruwal.

=====================================

‘Hamare Ram’ Play to be Staged in Jalandhar on August 28 and 29: Cabinet Minister Mohinder Bhagat and Advisor Deepak Bali

* Ashutosh Rana and his team to present acclaimed play based on the life and philosophy of Lord Ram at CT Institute

* Punjab Government taking special initiatives to promote religious harmony and preserve its rich spiritual heritage
*Chandigarh/Jalandhar, August 25:CT Institute, Jalandhar, is all set to host the acclaimed play ‘Hamare Ram’. Renowned actor Ashutosh Rana, along with his entire team, will present the play based on the Ramayana, highlighting the life, values and philosophy of Lord Ram.

Addressing a press conference, Punjab Cabinet Minister for Horticulture, Freedom Fighters and Defence Services Welfare Mohinder Bhagat and Advisor to the Punjab Government for Culture and Tourism Deepak Bali said that the government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann is according priority to respecting all religions in order to strengthen communal harmony.

The Cabinet Minister and the Advisor, while addressing the press conference along with Halqa In-charge Nitin Kohli, Rajwinder Kaur Thiara, Chairman, District Traders Commission, Indervansh Singh Chadda, senior leaders Pooja Singh and Roop Sandhu, said that the ‘Hamare Ram’ play is being organised to highlight the spiritual message and values of Sanatan Dharma.

They said that two shows each day would be organised at the Shahpur Campus of CT Institute on August 28 and 29. They invited the residents of the city to participate in large numbers and experience these performances.

Mr. Bhagat and Mr. Bali said that these performances would provide people, especially the younger generation, an opportunity to connect with the spirituality of Lord Ram and understand the message of his personality, simple life and devotion to religion.

They said that the Punjab Government has undertaken several initiatives to promote the values and traditional traditions associated with Sanatan Dharma. They said that the ‘Ek Shaam Bhagwan Shiv Ke Naam’ programme received an overwhelming response from people across the state. They also highlighted the development of Kali Mata Temple in Patiala at a cost of Rs. 80 crore and the proposal to construct Mata Sita and Luv-Kush temples at Ram Tirath, Amritsar.

The two leaders said that the Punjab Government respects saints and spiritual leaders of all religions. They said that the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji was commemorated successfully, while the 650th Parkash Purab of Sri Guru Ravidas Maharaj Ji is being celebrated on a large scale throughout the year. They said that, for the first time, the present government celebrated Bhagwan Parshuram Jayanti at the state level. Both leaders appealed to the people to make the ‘Hamare Ram’ performances a grand success.

=========================================