Ghaziabad: The power department has issued notices to 307 housing societies across the city for failing to submit mandatory annual electricity audit reports, intensifying efforts to monitor common-area power consumption and prevent RWAs and AOAs from overcharging residents.Common-area facilities in the audit include electricity consumed in common facilities such as lifts, lobbies, basements, parking areas, clubhouses and street lighting. Around 350-360 housing societies in the district are required to submit annual audit reports. So far, only 53 societies have complied.According to executive engineer (trans-Hindon), UPPCL Amit Jha, the department initially gave societies 15 days to submit the reports and later extended the deadline till July 31. “As most societies either did not comply or furnished unsatisfactory responses, fresh notices have now been issued, granting another 15 days,” he said, adding that non-compliance will now attract penalties.Societies will now be fined Rs 5,000 for the first default, Rs 10,000 for the second and Rs 15,000 for the third. Continued failure to submit the audit report could also lead to disconnection of the electricity connection, officials said.Jha said notices have so far been issued to housing societies in Indirapuram, Vaishali, Vasundhara, Kaushambi, Raj Nagar Extension, Mohan Nagar and other parts of Ghaziabad, covering several multi-storey residential complexes.“Every year, the RWA or AOA has to submit an electricity audit report. The audit should clearly mention the energy charges, fixed charges and other billing components so that we can verify residents are not being overcharged,” Jha said.Recently, the power department received several complaints from residents across the city about discrepancies in common-area electricity bills, including inflated consumption and excess recovery by RWAs or maintenance agencies.The audit requirement is particularly important for older societies that continue to operate on single-point electricity connections, Jha added. In 2018, such societies were directed to switch to multi-point connections following complaints that some builders were charging residents more than the actual electricity cost. While many societies have since migrated, several older complexes continue to operate on single-point connections, making annual audits essential to ensure transparency in billing.The department is monitoring compliance across all three power distribution zones in the district, officials said, adding that action will be taken against those who don’t comply in the first week of Aug.
