Solar plant user fee for govt staff likely to go

In a likely relief for thousands of government employees, the UT Administration is considering abolishing user fee currently being levied on rooftop solar power plants installed at government houses.

Presently, employees living in government houses are charged Rs 300 per kilowatt as the user fee for power consumption, which translates into Rs 900 for 3 kW plants and Rs 3,000 for 6 kW plants for a two-month billing cycle.

The fee, which is added to electricity bill issued by the Chandigarh Power Distribution Limited, has triggered widespread resentment among residents of government accommodations.

The Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science and Technology Promotion Society (CREST) has installed solar plants at 5,000 government houses out of a total 6,200 residential units spread across Sectors 7, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 39 and 41.

Additionally, solar systems have been installed on all government office buildings, making Chandigarh the first city in India to achieve 100% solar coverage on government infrastructure.

The decision to impose the user fee was taken in 2019, but government employees claimed they were not informed about it beforehand.

“As the Administration installed solar plants at its own cost, the employees assumed that no charges would be levied on them. Suddenly, Rs 300 per kW is being added to our power bills, which is unfair,” said a representative of government employees.

As per officials, CREST has sent a proposal to the Administration to waive the user fee. The Finance Department is expected to take a decision soon, which will end the additional burden on employees.