SAIDPUR — Years of unpaid electricity bills at Bihari camps in Saidpur of Nilphamari have piled up to about 66 crore taka (about $5.5 million), leaving the Northern Electricity Supply Company (NESCO) struggling to collect.
Alimul Islam, executive engineer of NESCO’s sales and distribution division in Saidpur, confirmed the figure Tuesday afternoon, April 21.
According to NESCO, 24 electricity meters installed at various camps in Saidpur are running up about 50 lakh taka in unpaid bills each month. With bills going unpaid, the arrears stood at about 66 crore taka as of April this year.
Through a High Court ruling in 2008, Biharis received Bangladeshi citizenship and voting rights. Until March 28, 2016, the Disaster Management and Relief Ministry paid the electricity bills for the Bihari camps. The camp residents then decided to pay their own bills, but no bills have been paid since.
NESCO has electricity connections in place, but residents have run hundreds of unauthorized connections by hooking wires in various places and are using power illegally, the company said. NESCO staff have been driven back by attacks and protests on multiple occasions when trying to collect arrears.
“It is not possible for us to pay years of bills running into crores of taka,” said Monwar Hossain, a Bihari camp resident. “All of us living here are low-income people. How will we pay so much money? We have no way to pay it.”
Another resident, Rajib Hasan, said: “We live an inhuman life in the camp. If they cut our power, how will we survive? That is why we don’t let them disconnect.”
Majed Iqbal, president of the Urdu-Speaking Camp Development Committee, said the residents had various demands and had appealed to the High Court. “At the time it was decided that the government would pay all our outstanding bills, but it did not,” he said. “We live an inhuman life in the camp. There is no end to our suffering. If they suddenly cut the power, many of us will fall ill and die in the heat, and will not get proper water. Many poor people live in the camp. How will we suddenly pay so much money? I am requesting the government to consider us and accept our demands.”
“About 66 crore taka in electricity bills have been outstanding at the Bihari camps for a long time,” Alimul Islam said. “When we go to disconnect power or ask for bills, we face attacks and protests. Many times we have come back with the help of law enforcement. We have informed senior officials. They will come and take whatever decision is best.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report