Retd engineer petitions PSERC
Says Punjab Govt failed to make advance payment of subsidy to the PSPCL
Umesh Dewan/TNS

Patiala, July 4
A retired superintending engineer (SE) from the erstwhile Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB), Gurnek Singh Brar, has filed a petition in the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) against the Punjab Government for its failure to make advance payment of subsidy to the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) as directed in the commission’s tariff order of 2011-12 issued on May 9, 2011.

As per the petition, a copy of which is with The Tribune, the PSERC had informed the Punjab Government through its letter dated April 24, 2011, that the subsidy amount for free power to agriculture, SC and non-SC/BPL domestic consumers was worked out as Rs 4188.92 crore, which is payable in monthly advance installments.

“The state government through its letter dated May 5, 2011, had given its acceptance for payment of subsidy of Rs 4,188.92 crore. The commission accordingly issued tariff order on May 9, 2011, incorporating the commitment of the Punjab Government for continuing the free power. However, on May 24, 2011, the Punjab Government issued an order by which an amount of Rs 981.93 crore, pertaining to period prior to September 30, 2001, along with interest, was adjusted against the subsidy amount of Rs 4,188.92 crore,” reads the petition.

Brar has stated in the petition that instead of complying with the commission order and making monthly advance payment of Rs 349.08 crore, the government paid only Rs 380 crore subsidy for the months of April and May 2011 and failed to make the advance payment of Rs 349.08 crore for June 2011. He further mentioned in his petition that when the PSERC, in its order of September 13, 2007, had ruled that the subsidy payable by the state government needs to be paid in advance, as per the requirement of the law, the question of adjustment of subsidy towards principal/loans does not arise.

“Under the one-time settlement scheme of the Union of India, the outstanding dues of the erstwhile PSEB towards the central sector companies like the NTPC etc were securitised by the Punjab Government through issue of long-term bonds in 2003. These amounts pertaining to period prior to October 1, 2001, were to be discharged by the Punjab Government as stipulated in the tripartite agreement with the Union Government and the RBI. The Punjab Government by violating the agreement has given a revenue shock of Rs 981.93 crore to the PSPCL, which would make the already precarious financial position of the power corporation even more critical.