Section 126 of EA 2003, Electricity Act : Section 126: Assessment

Explanation using Example

Imagine a restaurant owner, Mr. Sharma, who has a legitimate electricity connection for commercial use. One day, an assessing officer from the electricity board conducts a surprise inspection of Mr. Sharma's restaurant and discovers that the electricity meter has been tampered with to show lower consumption. The officer, suspecting unauthorized use of electricity, makes a provisional assessment of the electricity charges that Mr. Sharma should have paid, based on the best judgment.

The officer then serves Mr. Sharma with an order of provisional assessment, informing him of the extra charges due to the suspected unauthorized use. Mr. Sharma is given the opportunity to file objections if he disagrees with the assessment.

Mr. Sharma decides to object to the assessment, claiming that the meter malfunctioned without his knowledge. He files his objections and is granted a hearing. After considering the evidence, the assessing officer concludes that the unauthorized use of electricity did occur and issues a final order of assessment. The officer determines that the unauthorized use has been happening for six months and calculates the assessment for that period, charging Mr. Sharma at twice the normal tariff rate for the commercial category.

Mr. Sharma is now required to pay the assessed amount, which is significantly higher than his usual electricity bills, due to the penalty imposed for unauthorized use of electricity.