CHENNAI: Families living in houses of up to 250 square feet on poramboke land can now get electricity connections without a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the government departments concerned. In return, they would have to submit an undertaking on non-judicial stamp paper acknowledging they may be evicted and their electricity supply disconnected at any time if the government requires the land or a dispute arises in the future.
The Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) issued the instructions to its chief engineers and superintending engineers on October 7 following the state energy department order dated September 16 and the corporation’s own proceedings of September 24, according to official communications accessed by TNIE.
The facility will not cover houses on land classified as Neernilai poramboke (waterbodies), meikkal or mandaiveli/meichchal tharai (grazing land), forest land including forest poramboke, cantonment areas, railway land under the Union government, temple poramboke or patta land registered in the name of religious institutions. The connections will fall under a separate category, ‘Low Tension Tariff IA(3) - Poromboke’, but will be charged at the same tariff as domestic LT-IA connections. Before giving a connection, officials must verify the classification of the land with the village administrative officer or other revenue officials.
For households which have gone years without a legal electricity meter, the order may ensure authorised connections.
The corporation has directed its chief engineers and superintending engineers to ensure the instructions reach all field-level officials for strict implementation. Officials have been asked to submit district-wise and taluk-wise reports every three months, giving the number of applications received, connections provided and applications pending. The reports must reach the Chief Engineer (Commercial) by the fifth of the month following the end of each quarter.