HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad consumer forum has pulled up the Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Corporation limited (TSSPDCL) for failing to provide electricity service metres to a consumer and directed the discom to pay Rs 40,000 as compensation.
As per the complaint filed by Nawaz Fathima of Risala Bazar in Golconda, it was alleged that the discom failed to install three electricity service metres. This was despite the fact that Rs 7,200 was paid for installing the metres. Fathima noted that her requests were continuously declined despite paying several visits to the head office of the department at Mint Compound, requesting for the service metres to be fixed.
Though she pleaded that there were no pending arrears to the service number allocated to her residence, the TSSPDCL officials, however, alleged that there has been a theft case registered on the service number. As per the recordings by TSSPDCL officials, it was held that a cafe located on the premises stole electricity metres for which a theft case was registered.
Though Fathima pointed out that the complaint was pertaining to 2003 while she bought the property in 2012, the officials did not heed her request. The officials held that the present owner was supposed to pay the fine as per Section 135 of the Electricity Act.
However, with the TSSPDCL failing to prove and establish that there was a theft case in the building, the Hyderabad Consumer Forum directed the discom to pay compensation to the consumer. It directed the discom that three metres be installed while paying compensation of Rs 35,000 for causing mental agony besides Rs 5,000 towards court charges.