Govt offices owe Rs.200 crore in pending power bills

Haveri

The financial situation at Hubli Electricity Supply Company Limited (HESCOM) has deteriorated, with government offices in district alone owing Rs 200 crore in electricity bills. The total outstanding amount from all government offices stands at a whopping Rs 1,313 crore.  

The severity of the situation led HESCOM to disconnect power to the land record office in Dharwad. Hescom sources indicate that govt departments show little urgency in settling dues, partly due to insufficient funds and the absence of strict penalties for non-payment. HESCOM Chairman Sayed Azeempeer Khadri has instructed officials to take up the matter with relevant departments.

The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department (RDPR) owes the largest sum of Rs 136 crore, with the Department of Urban Development Cell (DUDC) owing Rs 67 crore, and Karnataka Neeravari Nigama Limited (KNNL) having dues of Rs 31 crore.

 We cannot cut off the power supply to RDPR department offices, local authorities or KNNL as it will ultimately cause inconvenience to the public. However, we are trying to bring some pressure on these departments to clear at least a part of their dues, said CM Hosamani, Assistant Executive Engineer.

We will write to the department secretaries concerned explaining to them the seriousness of the issue. Our jurisdictional engineers are personally visiting officers and requesting them to make amends. If some of them are not budging despite this, then they are disconnecting power for 10 to 15 minutes, shared a senior officer from HESCOM.

 Sayed Azeempeer Khadri, Chairman of HESCOM,  acknowledged the operational difficulties caused by government offices' pending dues. He explained that power cuts were not feasible for essential services like street lights and drinking water supply.