Magura electricity consumer issued 506 crore BDT erroneous bill

A residential electricity consumer in Magura, Bangladesh, was issued an erroneous bill totaling over 506 crore BDT for a single month. The customer, Mosammat Aleyya Khatun, used only 235 units of electricity, which should have resulted in a bill of approximately 1,963 BDT.

The massive discrepancy occurred because a meter seal number was mistakenly entered into the demand charge field during a meter change. This error resulted in a demand charge of 482.69 crore BDT and a VAT amount of 24.13 crore BDT. If unpaid by the deadline, the total amount including late fees would have exceeded 530 crore BDT.

Following media coverage, the Magura Palli Bidyut Samity's Arpara Zonal Office corrected the bill to the accurate amount. The consumer has since paid the corrected bill. The Deputy General Manager of the Arpara Zonal Office, Md. Rezaul Karim, acknowledged the clerical error, and the General Manager, Md. Mohitul Islam, stated that administrative action would be taken against those responsible after an investigation.