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Notices for recovery of ‘advance bills’: Traders paste memo outside PSERC chairperson’s office
Protesting against the notices being served by PSPCL for recovery of 45 days’ ACD, a delegation of JNSSMA went to meet PSERC chairperson in Chandigarh, and on finding him unavailable, pasted the memo outside his office
Protesting against the notices being served by Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) for recovery of 45 days’ advance consumption deposit (ACD), a delegation of Janta Nagar Small Scale Manufacturers Association (JNSSMA) went to meet Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) chairperson Viswajeet Khanna in Chandigarh on Thursday, and on finding him unavailable, pasted the memorandum on the office wall.
The industrialists threatened to raise an agitation, if their demands were not fulfilled within seven days. The delegation, led by JNSSMA president, Jaswinder Thukral, said, “People chose the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) hoping that it will change things for the better and bring some relief to the industry in this hour of crisis, but the inexperienced government was adding to industrialists’ woes by demanding advance bills for 45 days.”
“The bills are being generated keeping in mind the units’ average consumption. We have been told that our power connections will be snapped if we fail to pay advance bills.”
“While industrialists have been forced to take to the streets due to the additional financial burden foisted on them, the PSPCL chairperson is in some other country, which speaks of the apathy of the department and its officials,” said Thukral.
Earlier, different industrial associations had also staged a protest against the state government and PSPCL over the issue in Janta Nagar sub-division office of PSPCL on June 24.
PSPCL officials stated that the department had been recovering ACD in the past as well and only the amount had been revised as per the recommendations of the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission.”The decision has been taken at state level and any changes can also be made at state level,” an official, who did not wish to be named, said.
