We officially turn one-month old today. 💃🏻 And what a brilliant launch month it has been! We started on this adventure on a wing and a prayer—and the priceless support of the first batch of founding members who created a critical lifeline in the very first week. We cannot thank you all enough! 🙏🏻 🤗
We have earned ourselves some breathing space for now. But we still need to grow—and quickly—to both survive and thrive. So I’m asking all of you to please share the love and spread the word.
And be sure to use your referral link—available at the bottom of your daily email and your account page on our website (top right corner of the nav bar). It helps us keep track of all the excellent people you bring on board. Also: we can then offer you a gift of appreciation—either twelve more months of splainer or an Amazon gift card for Rs 1,000. (All of this is laid out in our FAQ)
Every founding member or annual subscription is a building block for a bright and long future together. Share splainer on your social networks, via WhatsApp, with friends, fam and colleagues. And if you harass perfect strangers, know that we will love you even more. ❤️❤️
The TLDR: This month, people across the country got a very rude shock when they received their electricity bill—which was anywhere between three to fifteen times the usual amount. The culprit: The lockdown which first deflated the owed amount between March and May—and has now sent it soaring. Here’s a short explanation of how this happened.
Sticker shock syndrome
The lockdown effect
Under normal circumstances, the local electricity company sends someone out to read your meter, and then issues a bill. But due to the ban on movement, that didn’t happen during the months of March, April and May. This had two consequences.
During the lockdown: our billed amounts were actually estimates based on the previous three months: December, January and February—i.e. winter, when all of us consume far less electricity since many don’t turn on their fans, and certainly not their air conditioners. Ergo: we were under-billed in April and May.
After the lockdown: Electricity companies started sending out meter readers to measure actual consumption over the past three months, including June. This amount was obviously higher. One, it’s summer. Two, all of us are at home. But the companies also slapped on an additional amount: the amount of consumption that was not captured in April and May estimates. The result: a sky-high bijli bill.
The math explained: Here’s how the big bill was created:
Of course, none of this explains why shops, factories and restaurants—which have remained empty—are facing the same degree of sticker shock.
The appeasement effort
Electricity companies issued elaborate statements and created guides to help consumers understand their bills. Tata Power even appealed for greater self-reflection (lol!):
“Please appreciate that COVID 19 and the lockdown across the country has altered our lifestyle significantly. For the period of 91 days for which the bills are being sent out, the family remained inside home for all 24 hrs. Tata Power would like the consumers to look for such lifestyle changes while reflecting over the last 3 months of lockdown and compare it with lifestyle pre lockdown or last year's same months.”
The Delhi government is urging its residents to check their own meters—since meter reading is still impossible in the city.
Maharashtra authorities have asked companies to provide the option of paying in monthly installments—and offer a 2% discount to those paying the entire amount on time.
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan announced a slew of generous subsidies for customers—and promised that no one will lose their connection due to an unpaid bill.
The bottomline: is this, of course:)
Dengue has emerged as a formidable killer—becoming more dangerous each passing year due to climate change.
Read MoreThe ambitious plans for NEOM are falling by the wayside. Are the Saudis running out of money?
Read MoreThe US is on the verge of banning TikTok—is this vindication for Indian govt or politicians grandstanding against China?
Read MoreIndian food products are under scanner for containing ethylene oxide—a known carcinogen.
Read More