First Appeal No.312 of 2008 and First Appeal No. 4 of 2009 have been filed by the Haryana State Pollution Control Board and State of Haryana through Financial Commissioner & Secretary to Government of Haryana & others respectively being aggrieved by the order of the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, UT Chandigarh (hereinafter referred to as the State Commission), which had held them inter alia deficient in service and directed them to pay the Respondent interest @ 12% per annum on the awarded amount with costs of Rs.10,000/-. 

Since the facts and the parties in both appeals are common arising out of the same consumer complaint, it is proposed to dispose of these appeals by a common order by taking the facts from First Appeal No.312 of 2008.    

          These appeals were admitted by the Coordinated Benches of this Commission.  Although one of the issues challenged pertained to the jurisdiction of the State Commission to hear cases relating to service matters, only limited notice relating to the interest was issued.  In this connection, it may be noted that the State Commission while accepting the complaint filed by S.K. Mittal (Respondent herein) had directed the Opposite Parties (Appellants herein) that the pending amount of Rs.11,27,292/- be paid to the Respondent with interest at the rate of 12% per annum.

          In both appeals Counsel for Appellants and Respondent in person are present. 

Counsel for Appellants state that the interest at the rate of 9% per annum, which is the rate of interest usually awarded, would be reasonable in the present case.  Respondent, who is present in person, has no objection to the same.

In view of these facts, we dispose of these appeals by partly modifying the order of the State Commission and reducing the rate of interest from 12% per annum to 9% per annum.  Appellants in both the appeals are directed to pay the awarded amount with interest at 9% per annum to the Respondent within a period of one month, failing which it will carry interest at the enhanced rate of 12% per annum for the period of default.