Anger over abnormally high electricity bills has spread across Tripura, with consumers staging protests, gheraoing electricity offices and blocking the Assam-Agartala national highway at several places on August 7. Consumers alleged that repeated tariff hikes and the introduction of smart meters have placed an additional financial burden on ordinary households. Protests were reported from Manu Ghat, Gandatwisa, Kumarghat, Bishalgarh and other areas, with demonstrators demanding correction and withdrawal of inflated bills. Some protesters also demanded the resignation of the state electricity minister.

In Longtharai Valley subdivision, hundreds of consumers gheraoed the office of the senior manager of Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL). As the protest intensified, demonstrators blocked the Assam-Agartala national highway at Manu Ghat, bringing traffic from both directions to a standstill. A large police contingent from Manu police station reached the spot and brought the situation under control. Officials, including the BDO of Manu block, the Longtharai Valley SDM, the Additional SP of Dhalai district and an AGM of the electricity corporation, later met the protesters and accepted a memorandum from their representatives.

The protesters alleged that electricity bills had increased abnormally in recent months, making them difficult for ordinary consumers to pay. They demanded an immediate investigation into the inflated bills, correction of erroneous charges and cancellation of smart meters to prevent similar problems in future.

In Kumarghat, consumers gathered outside the electricity corporation’s billing office and protested against what they described as excessive bills generated after the installation of smart meters. Consumers alleged that even when they came to deposit relatively small prepaid amounts, such as Rs 200 or Rs 500, they were allegedly being asked to pay substantially higher amounts. Some claimed that a bill of Rs 200 was being treated as Rs 700, while a Rs 500 payment was being turned into a demand for around Rs 1,000.

Employees at the counter, according to the protesters, said they were merely following instructions from higher authorities and had no discretion in the matter. The development led to heated exchanges at the billing office, with some distressed consumers breaking down in tears. The protesters questioned the government’s claims about the benefits of smart meters, saying that whatever advantages the system might offer, ordinary families were facing severe financial hardship because of the bills. They warned that if the issue was not resolved immediately, protests could intensify further.

In Gandatwisa, the subdivision committee of the Electricity Consumers and Employees Welfare Association submitted a memorandum to the senior manager of the electricity corporation. The organisation demanded regular power supply, an end to the forced installation of smart meters and withdrawal of the increased electricity tariff. It also demanded that additional charges collected under various heads, including duty charge, coil charge, fixed charge and meter charge, be stopped. An eight-point memorandum was submitted by a delegation comprising Lalit Mohan Tripura, association secretary Kashiram Tripura, Charu Kumar Chakma, Chiran Kumar Tripura and Nabendra Reang.

Lalit Tripura claimed that the senior manager had admitted that officials in Agartala were putting pressure on local authorities to install smart meters. According to him, the manager said there was little scope for local officials to resist instructions from higher authorities. After submitting the memorandum, Lalit Tripura appealed to people across the subdivision to prepare for a broader movement if the demands were not addressed.

In Bishalgarh too, consumers protested against inflated electricity bills. A demonstration was held outside the electricity subdivision office, while the office at Sekerkote was locked by angry consumers.

One small trader from Chikanchhara Bazar, who came to the Bishalgarh office to pay his monthly bill, said his electricity bill normally ranged between Rs 800 and Rs 1,000. He had paid Rs 1,005 the previous month. However, when he arrived on Friday to pay his latest bill, he was allegedly asked to pay around Rs 9,000, including purported arrears of Rs 8,888. Several other consumers reportedly complained of similar discrepancies and joined the protest outside the subdivision office.

In Sekerkote, consumers raised the issue with the senior manager after noticing similar discrepancies in electricity bills. The manager reportedly said that electricity tariffs had been increased three months earlier, but the corporation’s server problems had prevented the revised charges from being collected at the time. The increased charges for the previous three months were therefore being recovered together, resulting in higher bills. The explanation, however, failed to satisfy the protesting consumers, who said the figures still did not match their actual consumption. In protest, they locked the subdivision office with electricity employees still inside. Police later reached the spot and took the employees out of the office in the evening. The office was subsequently locked again.

The protests across several subdivisions have brought the growing public anger over electricity bills and smart meters into sharp focus. Consumers have demanded immediate scrutiny of billing practices, correction of inflated bills and withdrawal of excessive charges, warning that continued inaction could lead to larger protests across the state.