Government is the Major Defaulter, 413 crores Power Bill yet to be collected from various govt departments
Bhubaneswar, 17th Aug: While there is a move to further hike the power tariff in Odisha, it is found that several government departments under the state government, including the Energy department, are the biggest defaulters in paying the power bills. There is about Rs 413 crores of outstanding against the government departments since long. Such a startling news come out when the Energy department wrote to principal secretaries, heads of several departments and district collectors to pay their pending electricity dues. Surprising the Energy department it self a defaulter and Rs 1.09 crores electricity dues outstanding against its offices in five districts.
According to sources, Energy bill amounting Rs 13.26 crore is due against 30 departments in seven municipalities, four NACs in the State 56 agencies and departments defaults a whopping Rs 81.45 crore to CESU, while the arrears of several departments amounting Rs 9 crore to WESCO. Now the energy department making efforts to collect the arrears. “We have written to concerned authorities of the respective departments for the payment of electricity dues. We have also requested to the Chief Secretary to make some provision in supplementary budget for collection of the arrears,” said Energy Minister Prafulla Mallick to the media. In the other hand, consumers forum has vehemently opposed the GRIDCO’s move to hike power tariff in the state, when several government departments are the major defaulters of electricity bills for years. Situation would not be that worse if the pending bills were collected on time, said president of Electricity Consumers Association Ramesh Satpathy. He categorically claimed that, the association is opposing the proposal submitted for power tariff hike which is an attempt to pass burden on the consumer. The power companies are reluctant to bear the burden and trying to tie the burden to the consumers in the name of power tariff hike.
In protest against theattempt of GRIDCO’s for power tariff hike hike delegation of BJP state unit today moved to Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) to apprised irregularities made by government departments on paying the Electricity bills. When the Energy department itself is a defaulter, why consumers will bear the burden, asked BJP General Secretary, Bhrugu Baxipatra.
Congress MLA Prakash Behera on the other hand targeted Odisha Government for such precarious situation of the power sector.
“Government is trying to hike power tariffs to adjust the outstanding dues of Rs 413 crore which is totally unfortunate,” he said.
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