PANCHKULA, June 18 — A sharp rise in electricity bills across Panchkula has triggered widespread public anger, with middle-class households bearing the brunt of a new tariff regime introduced by the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) in May.
On Tuesday, two separate delegations — from the Hitaishi Foundation and the Residents Welfare Association (RWA) of Sector 20 — met UHBVN Managing Director Ashok Kumar Meena (IAS) to lodge formal objections and seek immediate relief.
“The bill jumped from ₹922 to ₹4,430 — nearly four times in a month. This is financially crushing for middle-class families,” said Bharat Hitaishi, chairman of the Hitaishi Foundation. He called the move from a slab-based system to a uniform rate of ₹6.50 per unit for consumers with loads above 5kW “unjust and deeply concerning.”
Foundation media advisor Suraj Prakash Vij criticised the introduction of fixed charges at ₹75 per kW. “A household with a 10kW connection is now paying an extra ₹750 every month, regardless of actual usage,” he said, adding that the burden is particularly heavy on timely-paying urban consumers.
Representatives of the RWA Sector 20, including president KK Jindal and general secretary Avinash Malik, also objected to the removal of “minimum charges” and the imposition of fixed charges, calling the revised billing structure arbitrary and inequitable. They further questioned UHBVN’s implementation of a cross-subsidy model, stating it was introduced only because the Haryana government had failed to release the promised subsidy to the power utility.
“The government’s delay has been unfairly shifted onto consumers,” said Jindal, who also pressed for a month-long extension on the bill payment deadline. Many residents, he said, had yet to receive physical copies of their bills and were unable to plan payments in time.
Responding to the concerns, UHBVN MD Ashok Meena said he would examine the possibility of extending the due date but clarified that the new tariff structure would remain in place for at least one year before any formal review could be undertaken.
Dissatisfied with the response, both delegations signaled plans to escalate the issue to the Power Ministry. “We are seeking an immediate rollback of the revised charges, which disproportionately affect law-abiding and middle-income families,” said foundation member SK Sharma, echoing the sentiments of over a dozen other attendees including BM Kaushik, BK Gupta, NC Swami, and others.
As discontent simmers, the issue has rapidly evolved into a flashpoint, uniting civic groups in their demand for equitable electricity pricing and urgent policy reconsideration.
