When C. Renjith, who represents Randalumoodu ward in Thalavoor panchayat, turned up at the counter of Pattazhy Kerala State Electricity Board office carrying a sack, the staff were puzzled. But their bewilderment soon gave way to alarm as it contained one, two, five and ten rupee coins to pay the electricity bills of nine families from his ward.
A unique form of protest against the frequent power outages in the area, it took the entire staff around four hours to count the coins and issue receipts. “They have made our lives hell with recurring power disruptions. One day I counted 50 outages in 24 hours and on an average power goes off at least 20 times a day. Apart from the serious convenience, electronic appliances at many households continue to get damaged. I started planning this after our complaints, queries and requests were met with stark indifference,” Renjith said.
Renjith went to Pattazhy section office with coins weighing more than 50 kg and each ‘kizhi’ had some extra coins to ensure that they will be counted. The total amount was ₹9,737 and it kept the entire office, including the AE, busy till evening.
“Their job did not end with counting as the bank will not accept assorted coins. They had to segregate coins of different denominations and that meant some extra work. The staff were furious, but they couldn’t do anything about it. They had no qualms about the trouble the KSEB was causing and it was an attempt to give them a taste of their own medicine,” he says.
Renjith adds that he is planning to to continue his protest in the coming months too. “Next time I will be coming with more bills and this is how we respond to their irresponsibility.”
According to KSEB officials, the area has a large number of trees and that is one reason for non-stop power outages. “We can manage if they cut power for a specified time, but they are doing it every hour. KSEB is expected to cut down tree branches that touch power lines, but they are not even doing that properly,” he says.
While this different form of protest is garnering huge applause on social media, many are planning to follow it as a means of retribution.
