Kerala State Electricity Board lose Rs 1.37 crore a year from toll plaza low tariff
Tariff rates were lowered to that of streetlights under local bodies.
THRISSUR: The KSEB has incurred a revenue loss of Rs 1.37 crore through improper billing of 39 private streetlights maintained and operated by the Paliyekkara toll plaza. It had lowered the tariff rate and made it equivalent to that of the streetlights under local bodies, according to a document accessed through the RTI. The regional audit officers at Irinjalakuda informed the chief internal auditor of KSEB at Vyduthi Bhavanam at Pattam, Thiruvanathapuram, in June that as per the direction of the then deputy chief engineer, electrical circle at Irinjalakuda, the billing charges were reduced from LT VII A (commercial) tariff to the lower tariff category of LT VII B which is meant for streetlights of local bodies.
The rate was reduced from Rs 120 per unit to Rs 9.3 from June 2014. The 39 private streetlights are spread across six KSEB sections as per the report of the audit officers and the total loss is pegged at Rs 1,37,08,809 . The monthly average was found to be Rs 5, 87,086. RTI activist P.B. Satheesh of Mannuthy said that he had asked about the proceedings that led to the KSEB lowering the tariff for the toll company and the documents related to this. “The KSEB officials in Vyduthi Bhavan asked me to file another application with the deputy chief engineer’s office in Irinjalakuda to get those details.
No action has been taken against any of the officials for making such a loss to the KSEB,” said Satheesh, who is the functionary an RTI organization called ‘Nerkazhcha.’ The company which undertook the toll road project between Angamaly and Mannuthy on an estimated cost of Rs 725 crore is expected to collect a total toll of Rs 3,000 crore by 2028 when the toll collection is set to end.
This is as per an estimate prepared by Thrissur DCC vice-president Joseph Tajet on the basis of the details of the toll collected at the plaza since February 9, 2012. Toll company manager A.V. Sooraj told DC that there were nearly 1,800 streetlights on the toll way and that such details should be clarified by the NHAI and KSEB.