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Former royal family faces power cut

KATHMANDU, Nepal, Oct. 24 (UPI) -- Former Nepalese King Gyanendra and his family must pay overdue electricity bills of about $1 million or face power cuts in their palaces and homes.

The Nepal Electricity Authority has given the former royal family 15 days to settle the bills relating to several of their palaces and residences, Kantipur Online reported, quoting sources.

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The current Maoist-led government helped abolish the Himalayan state's 240-year-old monarchy in May when Nepal became a republic.

The bills, totaling about 77.7 million Nepalese rupees, include a fine of about 12.5 million rupees or about $194,000, the report said.

The utility has instructed its various distribution centers to implement its order if payment is not received by the deadline date, the report said.

When Gyanendra was on the throne, requests from the NEA to pay the bills were largely ignored by family members, the report said.

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