A tailor in the Valsad district of Gujarat was surprised after he received an electricity bill surpassing the value of his property. Muslim Ansari has been running the shop along with his uncle, usually paying their bills using UPI.
But after receiving the bill amount of Rs 86 Lakh, he was shocked and his heart skipped a beat. "I was stunned and thought how could this happen? I rushed to the electricity board office the next day and showed them the bill," NDTV quoted him as saying.
New Fashion Tailor, a shop in Chor Gali of Gujarat's Valsad, specialised in stitching the attire of men, from shirt-pants to sherwanis. It receives electricity from Dakshin Gujarat Vij Company Limited (DGVCL), which serves over 32 lakh consumers across seven districts in south Gujarat.
DISCOM Officials Inspect Electricity Meter
When shop owner Muslim Ansari reported an unusually high electricity bill, the discom officials quickely inspected the meter. They discovered that an error had occurred—two extra digits, "10," had mistakenly been added to the meter reading, resulting in the massive bill amount of Rs 86 lakh.
"There was a mistake. The person who took the meter reading added the digits 10 to the meter reading and this led to the (Rs 86 lakh) bill. We have now given a revised bill of ₹ 1,540," said Hitesh Patel, an employee of the power distribution company.
Finally, Muslim Ansari took a relieved now. "They have checked the issue and given me a new bill. This is for ₹ 1,540. The electricity bill for the shop is usually under ₹ 2,000," he spoke with a smile while working on garments with his sewing machine.
The shop has since drawn considerable attention, with curious visitors stopping by after hearing about the Rs 86 lakh bill. Some have even snapped photos of the erroneous bill. Jokingly, Ansari remarked that he might start charging people for taking pictures.
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