Hundreds of SSIs delayed power line by months over transformer paucity even as 1,600 devices gather dust: Association
The group also stated that, in addition to the pending service connections, approximately 140 distribution transformers are required to replace ageing equipment in Coimbatore.
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CHENNAI: The Coimbatore Consumer Cause, a consumer rights organisation, has flagged severe delays in the provision of new low-tension (LT) electricity service connections across the Sate, particularly in Coimbatore, allegedly due to ‘non-availability’ of distribution transformers (DTs), despite 1,600 transformers remaining idle in the utility’s stores in Coimbatore, awaiting deployment under a central government scheme.
In a letter addressed to the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) on June 16, Kathirmathiyon K, secretary, Coimbatore Consumer Cause, said that hundreds of applicants in Coimbatore alone, including industrial units that have completed construction and installed machinery, have been waiting for service connections for nearly a year.
“Many applications are pending for more than nine months, in violation of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Distribution Standards of Performance Regulations, 2004, which mandates that connections involving distribution transformer work be provided within 90 days,” the letter stated.
He said that under the regulations, the TNPDCL is liable to pay compensation of Rs 200 per day for delays, subject to a cap of Rs 2,000. “Whether the delay is 10 days or 400 days, the maximum penalty is Rs 2,000, which has rendered the provision ineffective,” the letter said, adding that the affected consumers, particularly small-scale industries, have suffered heavy financial losses due to the inordinate delay.
The group also stated that, in addition to the pending service connections, approximately 140 distribution transformers are required to replace ageing equipment in Coimbatore. Despite this demand, the utility has not moved to use the transformers lying unused in its stores, the letter alleged.
“These transformers are reportedly earmarked under the central government’s Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) and are not being deployed locally. On the one hand, consumers are being told that transformers are not available. On the other hand, hundreds of units are gathering dust in the utility’s stores,” Kathirmathiyon said.
Stating that the delay in providing service connections not only affects consumers but also results in a revenue loss for the utility, the organisation has urged the TNERC to intervene. He has sought immediate action to clear the backlog and ensure that idle transformers are deployed where urgently required, in the interest of consumers and the power distribution system.
