NOT ABOVE BOARD -
PSEB bends rules to favour `powerful' farmer
Harjinder Sidhu
BATHINDA/FARIDKOT:

In what could be construed as undue favour, the Punjab State Electricity Board has liberally doled out freebies to a farmer from Sandhwan village in Faridkot district, against rules.
The farmer is a close associate of some leaders in the state establishment, it is learnt. Which, in turn, gained Kuldeep Singh an exemption of over Rs 9 lakh on his request for a 250 KW connection through the independent feeder for his greenhouse project in May 2009.

The favour is in violation of PSEB electricity supply code and related regulation.

The Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) is yet to clear the case for conces- sions to the farmer, but the PSEB, in its enthusiasm, has already started the process for installing the 250 KW power connection.

The board has not only agreed to waive all manda- tory expenses for the con- nection, but gone ahead and exempted power supply to the farmer from peak load restrictions.

PSEB Additional Superintending Engineer (ASE), Kotkapura, Gian Chand Singla, when con- tacted, said that the project was cleared as an excep- tional case. "But, power supply to the farmer is yet to begin."

However, Faridkot Superintendent Engineer Inderjit Garg claimed that the process for releasing power connection has been started as the applicant farmer has agreed to pay any cost and penalties imposed by the PSERC in the future.

Norms lay that an appli- cant seeking a new connec- tion under agriculture cate- gory must pay charges per BHP/KW as approved by the PSERC. Not so for Kuldeep Singh.

The PSEB, in its Full Board meeting on October 13 last year, decided to give metered supply under agri- culture tariff without sub- sidy through independent feeder and asked Kuldeep Singh to deposit security charges at the rate of Rs 200 per BHP, Rs 28,500 for metering equipment and the cost of feeder amount- ing to Rs 9,24,800. He was asked to observe peak load instructions.

But, on December 17, 2009, after Kuldeep Singh moved an application to SDO, Kotkapura, asking for the board to give the con- nection without any service connection charges, the SE Faridkot sent his case to high-ups intimating that cost of the feeder line to be used for applicant is Rs 7.55 lakh and that the case be sent to the board to give connection without any expenditure. He also sought that it be exempt from peak load restrictions.

On January 27 this year, the Full Board of PSEB decided to give the connec- tion without deposit of service connection charges and cost of line. That, too, without the approval of PSERC.

While the PSERC is yet to decide the case, a demand notice has already been issued by PSEB field office under Faridkot circle on March 11, 2010, indicat- ing that no amount is to be deposited.