The district consumer disputes redressal forum, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, has directed the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to pay Rs 30,000 compensation to a Balachaur farmer, who could not irrigate his poplar trees due to fault in electricity supply.
Gurdian Singh, a resident of Mehatpur village, had alleged that he had planted 450 poplar trees on his land. For the proper growth of the trees, timely irrigation was a requisite. The only source of irrigation for the trees was his electric tubewell, having power supply from a transformer installed near Government Middle School, Lalpur.
“Due to a default in the power supply, I could not carry out irrigation, which ultimately led to the trees’ damage,” he said in a complaint registered on September 3, 2019.
The PSPCL, its written reply, said that the disputed transformer has been supplying electricity to many other consumers but nobody other than the complainant had a problem.
“This act of the PSPCL amounts to deficiency in service and negligence,” observed the forum while directing it to pay Rs 30,000 to the farmer.