Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The electricity department has announced that it will undertake a large-scale verification exercise to curb the misuse of domestic power connections for commercial purposes, once the new tariff regime comes into force.
In its submission before the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC), the department acknowledged that several second homes and rental properties across Goa continue to be billed under the domestic category despite being used for commercial activity. The issue was flagged by stakeholders during the recent public hearing on the tariff petition.
“The department will initiate a comprehensive verification exercise after the revised tariff structure is rolled out. Each consumer’s connection will be reviewed and reclassified wherever misuse of domestic tariffs is detected,” officials said.
The department also said it is working closely with the tourism department to identify commercial operations running from residential premises so they can be shifted to the low-tension (LT) commercial category.
At the hearing, participants alleged that villas and holiday homes offered for rent are billed as domestic properties, amounting to revenue loss. “Such misuse is akin to power pilferage. With most rentals happening through online platforms, even panchayats and housing societies are often unaware,” stakeholders pointed out.
They further criticised the absence of a dedicated monitoring cell within the power department and suggested better coordination with tourism, panchayat, and urban development authorities to track rental activities.
“A special inspection and enforcement squad should be set up to reclassify these cases under LT commercial tariffs. This will plug revenue leakage and ensure consumers are billed fairly,” they added.
