In 2009, the state ex-chequer shelled out Rs.1,16,62,101 as the electricity bill of the prime minister’s residence, 7, Race Course Road. That is not all. The The electricity consumption and therefore, the bill amount has been increasing by almost 50 percent for the last three years.

The bill amount for the years 2007 and 2008 was Rs 12. 6 lakh and Rs 50. 3 lakh respectively, according to information obtained by Mumbai based RTI activist Chetan Kothari.

“On one hand the common man is facing power cuts almost every day. On the other, we have these consistently increasing power bills. It is a sorry state of affairs,” said Kothari.

The president secretariat incurred electricity bill of Rs 6.29 crore for the year 2007- 2008 and Rs 6. 88 crore for 2008- 2009.

As per the information, the Parliament house tops the list when it comes to electricity consumption with the bill for year 2009 amounting to Rs 8. 51 crore. The Parliament consumed more than 1. 62 core units of power in 2009. The bill amount for the Parliament was Rs 7.95 crore in 2007 and Rs 8. 28 crore in 2008.