‘PSEB cannot seek dues for more than two years’

President of the Commission,Justice SN Aggarwal,and Members Amarpreet Sharma and BS Sekhon have stated in a recent order that a consumer cannot be burdened with a huge bill,covering a decade. The order states,“If there was inaccuracy to record correct (electricity) consumption,the officers of the Board were also liable to check the meter off and on.”

The order was issued following a complaint filed by Shivala Bagh Bhaian Trust,Amritsar,against the Board. The Trust stated that the electricity connection at its premises was checked by the enforcement wing of PSEB in August 2007. Following this,the Board asked the Trust to pay Rs 22.47 lakh for the period April 1999 to July 2007.

The Trust added that when it made a representation to the Board,the bill amount was raised to Rs 25.73 lakh,since the period was extended to July 2007. The reason,said the Board,was that when the meter was checked,it was found to be running slow. The Board stated that its officials had made a bona fide mistake by not applying the correct multiplying factor. As a result,the Board had suffered a revenue loss.

Adjudicating the case,the Commission observed that as per Section 56(2) of the Electricity Act,2003,no charges due from any consumer can be recovered after a period of two years from the date when the charges first became due. This can be done only if the charges have been shown continuously recoverable as arrears for electricity supply. In this light,the Commission directed PSEB to raise a fresh bill for electricity consumption from August 2005 onwards,and not from April 1999. The other demand notices issued by the Board were set aside by the Commission.