The government has decided to exempt the 5 percent surcharge for late payment of electricity bills by residential customers for another month in light of the ongoing coronavirus crisis.
The exemption has now been extended to five months — from February to June. Customers have until Jul 31 to clear their bills for June, the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission said in a notice on Thursday.
Power Secretary Sultan Ahmed earlier suggested the possibility of waiving the fine for falling behind payment in June. The exemption of the surcharge for failing to pay bills within the monthly deadline was one of the government’s initiatives to ease the plight of ordinary people during the coronavirus epidemic.
The BERC had already exempted residential clients from paying 5 percent surcharge on late bill payment in February, March and April. The ministry decided to scrap the penalty for May as coronavirus cases began to surge in the country.
Source: bdnews24.com
