Electricity bill as per commercial charges makes holes in resources of rural libraries, want bill as per domestic charges

Bathinda: The philanthropists and those at forefront in promoting book culture by opening libraries in rural areas of Punjab, are facing a costly affair. The good Samaritans somehow set up libraries through their own resources without any support from the state government, have to pay electricity bills as per commercial charges. The commercial charges are nearly 50% more than the domestic under various slabs as the units of electricity consumed in any billing cycle, which makes a big hole in their meager resources. They feel if the electricity bills are charged as per domestic charges, it could provide them with a much-needed relief. Those running such libraries have been making this demand for a long time.

Under domestic connection, there are no charges for consuming up to 600 units in two months and the bill is generated bimonthly but under domestic connection, there is no free unit, and the bill is generated every month.

There are dozens of libraries set up either by village panchayats, youth clubs or individuals in the villages of Malwa Region, and all are facing this financial hardship.

“We have set up libraries by collecting meager donations from villagers, acquittances, and well-wishers. We have to pay a big part of the resources for purchasing books and other infrastructure apart from paying newspaper bills. After spending a lot on it, we are left with very small amounts to pay the electricity bills, that too on commercial rates. We have been demanding for a long time that libraries should be charged as per domestic rates and for it we approached AAP Bathinda district president Jatinder Bhalla on Wednesday to raise the matter with chief minister Bhagwant Mann”, said Santosh Rishi and Kewal Krishan, who respectively represents libraries at Khiva Kalan village in district Mansa and Shaheed Bhagat Singh library at Jeeda village in Bathinda.

Shaheed Bhagat Singh Library is one of the most prominent libraries in the Malwa region for which some philanthropists donated money with which the library committee nicely refurbished the library but with not much regular income it too faces hardships in paying electricity bills on commercial charges.

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had inaugurated a number of libraries in the past and claims to be a promoter of book culture. He should look into the demand, they said.