Mahavitaran Abhay Yojana 2026-27 has provided Nagpur resident Ashfaq Qureshi Ahmed relief of about ₹3.36 lakh from accumulated electricity arrears after he paid ₹4,93,650 in a single instalment, according to Loksatta – Nagpur.
Qureshi, who lives under the Shantinagar branch office of Mahavitaran’s Binaki sub-division, had been unable to pay his electricity bills because of financial difficulties. His household power supply was permanently disconnected on 27 May 2021, and the home remained without electricity for the next five years.
By 24 October 2026, the arrears recorded in his name had reached ₹8,29,867. After learning about the Abhay Yojana, Qureshi chose to settle the amount through the scheme’s one-time payment option. The payment reduced the outstanding burden by the difference between the total arrears and the amount deposited.
The relief included a waiver of ₹2,04,647 in interest, ₹7,711 in delayed-payment charges and ₹443 in demand charges. Qureshi also received an additional early-bird rebate of ₹1,23,411 for making the one-time payment within the applicable period, bringing the total benefit to approximately ₹3.36 lakh.
The case illustrates how prolonged disconnection can allow arrears to grow substantially through accumulated interest and charges, leaving households with a liability far beyond the original unpaid bills. In Qureshi’s case, the account remained unresolved for several years after the supply was cut, until the relief scheme created a route for a one-time settlement.
Mahavitaran officials from the Binaki sub-division, including Additional Executive Engineer Vivek Raut and Assistant Engineer Subodh Mandpe, along with Naresh Malkhede, Abhinav Vachasundar and Shahid Akhtar, guided Qureshi through the process, the report said.
Mahavitaran has appealed to consumers whose electricity connections were disconnected because of arrears to obtain information about the Abhay Yojana and assess whether they can use its payment and rebate provisions.
