Punjab Newsline
Petition before PSERC for payment of government subsidy to PSEB
Vinod Kumar Gupta
Friday, 16 January 2009
CHANDIGARH: A petition has been filed by Padamjit Singh former PSEB chief engineer with Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) against the Punjab government for failing to pay the full agricultural subsidy to the PSEB.

The petition claimed that PSERC should direct the PSEB to levy full tariff in case of default in subsidy payment was mandatory under Section 65 of the Electricity Act 2003. It said full subsidy has not been paid to the PSEB as per the time frame prescribed by the Regulatory Commission.

PSEB has received a subsidy amount of only Rs 1,640 crore from the government up to December against total subsidy of 2601 crores. Moreover the state government made only a provision of Rs. 2000 crores in its budget of 1008-09 for payment of subsidy.

Padamjit Singh has pleaded that in order to pre-empt a repeat of last year, the Regulatory Commission must advise the government to make the required estimated provision in the budget for 2009-10.

The petition has also sought a direction to Punjab Government to pay balance subsidy of current financial year in cash and not to go for book adjustment against earlier loans as was done last year. The petition has also requested that PSERC may decide a penalty on Punjab Government for continued contravention of commissions order dated September 13 2007 and July 3 2008.