Powercom bills of Rs 2.6 cr remain unpaid for Tarn Taran admn

Gurbaxpuri

Tarn Taran, March 11

The district administration has turned out to be a major defaulter of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) as electricity bills of more than Rs 2.60 crore remain unpaid for months. Though the district administration availed the one-time settlement (OTS) scheme of the Powercom and had been exempted an amount of Rs 40 lakh, the bill payment has been not been made to the Powercom till date.

Sources revealed here on Monday that the offices of the Deputy Commissioner, SSP besides others working from the District Administrative Complex (DAC) have been consuming power for months but the bills have not been cleared yet. Sources said that there was one bill worth the payment of Rs 1.5 crore, another of the amount of Rs 1.13 crore which are part of the defaulting amount. Hardeep Singh Sekhon, Senior Executive Officer of the local Operation Suburban Division, said though the district administration was a defaulter and a huge amount remained to be paid, the power supply cannot be disconnected. The XEN said that the district administration under the one time settlement scheme of the Powercom contacted the department to pay the defaulting amount and was exempted an amount of Rs 40 lakh but the rKemaining sum has not been paid, said XEN HS Sekhon.

An official pointed out that the district administration always remains a defaulter for the Powercom as new bills are received to be paid even as old bills are settled.

Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Varinderpal Singh Bajwa, when contacted, expressed his ignorance over the issue and said that he would have to apprise himself of the development.

There are many other departments that have defaulted on Powercom bills as the non-availability of funds makes timely payment tough.