Kathmandu, Ashwin 22 – Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Birajbhakta Shrestha, has appealed to citizens to pay their electricity bills through digital channels.
Citing statistics showing that 73 percent of citizens still pay their electricity bills in person at counters—even in this digital age—Minister Shrestha emphasized the need for everyone's cooperation to change this practice.
According to the Minister, there are currently 655 bill collection counters in operation across the branches of the Nepal Electricity Authority’s 129 distribution centers. He noted that the operation of these counters alone incurs an annual cost of approximately Rs 597.9 million.
He stated that encouraging digital payments and reducing crowds at counters would save citizens both time and travel expenses. Furthermore, Minister Shrestha highlighted that a reduction in cash transactions would enhance financial transparency and security, while allowing the resources and manpower currently used for counters to be redeployed for other essential customer services. He urged citizens to encourage their family members, relatives, neighbors, and others to pay their electricity bills digitally.
In particular, he requested people to teach parents, senior citizens, and relatives who may not know how to make digital payments. Minister Shrestha remarked that just a few minutes of assistance could save them time every month. He has stated that digital payments should be viewed not merely as a campaign to increase the use of technology, but as a collective endeavor linked to saving citizens' time, facilitating service delivery, ensuring financial transparency, and effectively utilizing public resources.
