State Allows Government Offices 300 Days to Clear Power Dues as Smart Meter Rollout Begins

MP, June 12, 2026, Kolkata: To implement smart prepaid electricity meters across government establishments, the West Bengal government has allowed all state government departments and parastatal bodies to clear their outstanding electricity dues either through a single payment or in instalments over a period of up to 300 days.

The decision comes as the West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL), under the state Power Department, begins installing prepaid smart electricity meters in government offices across the state.

According to an official memorandum issued by the Finance Department, government offices had earlier been permitted to recharge prepaid electricity meters through contingency bills submitted to treasuries, along with sanction orders issued by the respective Heads of Offices.

The provision was introduced through a Finance Department memorandum dated October 28, 2024.

With the transition from the existing post-paid billing system to the prepaid regime now underway, the government has introduced a mechanism to recover outstanding electricity dues accumulated under the post-paid system.

Departments and government-controlled entities will be required to pay the total unpaid post-paid electricity bill outstanding on the date of conversion to prepaid metering.

The memorandum states that these dues may either be cleared in a single payment through the existing procedure by downloading bills from the WBSEDCL portal or paid in phases over a maximum period of 300 days.

To streamline the process, the government has also prescribed separate formats for sanction orders relating to prepaid electricity payments.

The order will come into effect from August 1, 2026.

Officials said the move is expected to facilitate a smoother transition to smart prepaid metering while ensuring recovery of pending electricity dues in a structured manner, without imposing an immediate financial burden on government offices.