DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION: BHADRAK

Dated the 27^th day of November, 2020

C.D Case No. 20 of 2018

                                                   Present 1. Shri Raghunath Kar, President

                                                                2. Shri Basanta Kumar Mallick, Member

                                                                3. Afsara Begum, Member                                         

Bilasin Swain, Aged about -75 years

W/o- Late Gopal Chandra Swain

Vill- Arei, Po- Charampa

P.s- Bhadrak(R)

Dist- Bhadrak

                                                ……complainant

                                    Vrs.

1. Junior Engineer, NESCO Electrical

At – Power house, By pass

Po/P.s/Dist – Bhadrak

2. S.D.O Electrical No.2 Bhadrak

At- Power house

Po/P.s/Dist – Bhadrak

                                    ……. O.Ps

Counsel For Complainant: Sroi N. Sahu, Adv & Others

Counsel For the O.Ps: Smt. G. Pradhan, Dy Manager (Legal) NESCO

Date of hearing: 18.04.2020

Date of order: 27.11.2020

RAGHUNATH KAR, PRESIDENT

This dispute arises out of a complaint filed by the complainant alleging deficiency of service and unfair trade practice against the O.Ps.

The facts of the case as narrated in the complaint are to the effect that, the complainant has filed the instant complainant being aggrieved with the deficiency of service and dishonest trade practice against the O.Ps caused by them to the affect that. The complainant is a Domestic consumer Vide A/C No. BZ-70680 and new A/C No. 421413100906 under the O.Ps. The meter reader of the O.Ps has imposed average unit as per his swet will without reading the meter. The bill of every month is not prepared by the O.Ps, so the O.Ps delivered a bill which showed the net amount was RS. 58,158/- on Dt. 15.02.2015. The complainant paid the electric bill. Still the O.Ps served a disconnection notice upon the complainant on Dt. 16.02.2017. The notice server told to the complainant to pay the bill amount RS. 26, 0314/- to the O.Ps towards arrear of the electric bills. The complainant paid RS. 32,965/- towards the electric bill in the year 2017, but no bill was prepared regarding this. In the same year the O.Ps installed a new meter. As per the reading of the new meter the bills prepared on Dt. 13.11.2017, 12.12.2017 & 11.01.2018 showed the average consumption was RS. 98.6/- the said amount has not been deducted from the previous amount the said bills have not been corrected till date. The complainant has become aggrieved that, the imposition of excess amount of previous bills without any basis is deficiency of service. The complainant has further claimed that the bills as on Dt. 19.02.2018  amount to RS.245797/- is required to be corrected.

The disconnection notice which was served on Dt. 05.03.2018 shows the arrear is amounts to Rs. 246428/-. The O.Ps have been threatening to the complainant for disconnection of power supply time to time.

Hence following reliefs -:

1. The O.Ps be directed for correction of the bill which has been prepared by them towards the power supply charges amount to RS. 2,46,428/-.
2. The O.Ps be also directed to adjust the previous amount which has been already paid by the complainant in the from the arrear.

Documents relied upon by the complainant (Xerox copies) –

1. The bills of Dtd. 15.02.2015, 22.10.2015, entire the year 2017 and 2018.
2. Money receipts from Dtd. 13.12.2015 to 31.08.2017.
3. Disconnection notice Dtd. 16.02.2017.
4. Other notices.

On the other hand the O.Ps have filed their W/V. They have admitted the facts made in the paragraph No.1 of the complaint. They have also admitted the averments made in the paragraph No. 2 of the complaint and denied the other part of the same paragraph. They have denied the averment made in the paragraph No. 3, 4partly and paragraph No. 5.

The fact of the W/V is that all the claimed amounts in the electric bill is correct and basing on the calculations as per Tariff order of OERC. The complainant received the disconnection notices but did not pay the arrear dues even the current electricity dues. The entire claimed amount and its calculations are within the knowledge of the complainant but she intentionally avoided to pay the same. Then a spot verification was made. The same report was prepared by the O.P in the course of their official duty which has been duly received by the complainant and the same cannot be denied in subsequent time by him. In this connection the Honourable Supreme Court has held in the case, “Punjab State Electricity Board and Others VS. Ashwini Kumar, (2010 AIR) “in which it has been made clear that the inspection report was a document prepared in exercise of official duty by  the officers of the Corporation. The onus was upon the consumer rebut by proper cojent evidence that the report prepared by the officers was not correct. The O.Ps also rely on the decision of the Honourable National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Revision petition No. 238 of 2011 passed in the case of Narinder Kumar Jain Vrs. Punjab State Electricity Board on 3^rd October 2017. The O.Ps have also challenged this complaint raising the question of maintainability and limitation. They have also challenged the complainant has come to this commission supressing the material facts and unclean hands. Hence the O.Ps have prayed for the dismissal of this complainant.

Documents relied upon and filed by the O.Ps (Xerox copies) –

1. Spot verification report Dtd. 19.12.2014
2. Later issued to the complainant Dtd. 03.02.2015
3. Calculation of demand against SVR No. 773/19314 Dtd. 19.12.2014
4. Billing statement of the complainant.
5. Copy of disconnection notice Dtd. 16.02.2017..
6. Copy of disconnection notice in the month of January 2018.
7. Judgment of Honourable Apex Court.

                                                OBSERVATION

We have already gone through the complaint and the W/V as well as the documents filed by both the parties. The complainant is an electricity consumer bearing vide consumer No. A/CBZ-70680 and new A/C No. 421413100906. This fact is also admitted by the O.Ps. The complainant (consumer) has alleged against the O.Ps that they have prepared the electric bills without meter reading and imposed average unit upon the complainant, she has also alleged that the O.Ps have not prepared the bills every month and regularly. The bills were prepared according their own will. She has further alleged that the O.Ps have imposed excess amount according to the consumption of the consumer. The O.Ps have admitted that the complainant has paid RS.32, 965.00P on Dt. 16.02.2017 to the O.Ps towards the electric dues. As per our observation the complainant is a chronic defaulter of payment of the electric dues. She has paid the electric dues ones in the year 2010. Further she has paid nothing in the year 2011, 2012 & 2013. She has paid the electric dues ones in the year 2014 in the month of December. She has not been paying the electric dues regularly, so huge amount towards the electric bill is pending as arrear upon the complainant.  On Dt. 19.12.2014 the premises of the consumer as verified by the O.Ps and it was detected that the consumer(complainant) was using load of 3.5 KW in excess instead of allowed contract demand of 1.0 KW load and the CMR in the installed meter was 61469 with running condition. During the time of spot verification Mrs. Sangita Swain the Daughter- in- law of the complainant was present there. She has put her signature on the spot verification report. Basing on the SVR a detailed calculation is made in which 45,246 Units were added during April 2010 November 2014 on the enhanced 3.5 K.W of load. Accordingly the notice was served on the complainant by the O.P No. 2 vide his office letter No. 54(2) Dt. 03.02.2015 for payment of RS. 2,44,158/- as the energy meter was in running condition a detailed calculation sheet was prepared and opportunity was given to the complainant for hearing on Dt. 18.02.2015. The notice was also duly received by the complainant herself but she did not attend the hearing fixed by the O.P No. 2 and did not file any relevant document against the amount claimed on the schedule date of hearing. The full claimed amount of RS. 2,44,158/- was added in the electric bill of the consumer on the month of August 2015. Further the bill was also revised an amount of RS. 57,641.38p/- also withdrawn from the bill during the month of August 2015.

Further all the claimed amounts in the electric bill is correct and basing upon the calculations as per Tariff order of OURC. The complainant is very negligent to pay the current electric dues. The O.Ps have served disconnection notice upon the complainant several times but she did not become careful to regularize the electricity dues

The complaint has failed to write the date of cause of action in the complaint. Although the matter is an year old case, but the complainant has filed this case in a belated stage.The complainant has submitted 9 numbers of money receipts (Xerox copies). But all the money receipts are of the year 2017. The complainant has not filed a single copy of current electric bill and money receipt. The complainant has overcome the scopes of hearing his grievance in the proper forum several times, although she is very much aware of this matter.

The complainant has suppressed the facts of the spot verification report as it has been served upon her daughter in law and she has received the same. So this complaint is barred by Law of Limitation as well as the cause of action. Instead of agitating this matter in the competent forum she has filed this C.D case. She has avoided many scopes to solve his grievance and filed the instant case in this commission in a belated stage which is not maintainable. Hence it is order;

OREDR

The complaint be and the same is dismissed on contest without cost.

This order is pronounced in the open Forum on this day of 27^th November, 2020 under my hand and seal of the Forum.