Systemic failure behind worsening power scenario

Bonnie Konyak
Dimapur | March 27 

In the backdrop of the concern raised by the public on the power scenario in the State, Member of Parliament W. Wangyuh Konyak has put it down to failure on the part of the department itself. Talking to The Morung Express, the MP expressed his unhappiness on the way all the departments were functioning, including the Power sector and said that there was no question of funds lacking and the Central Government was willing to release the fund provided that work was completed honestly. On being intimated of the abandoned HFO Thermal project here at Chumukedima, Wangyuh replied that the reason could be that the department had failed to submit the Utilization Certificate (UC) to the Ministry which was responsible for blocking the releasing of the remaining fund. The MP continued that without the UC, which is a record of how much fund had been utilized for the amount of work, no fund would be released by the Centre and added that the same had been the case with the 2 MW Tehok Mini Hydro Project that had been stopped because the Centre would not sanction the 2nd installment of Rs 600 lakhs for the project. Wangyuh also laid some of the blame on the general public ‘who want to have the basic amenities without paying for it’ and said that the people should cooperate with the department and pay their bills on time.

The department of Power has meanwhile refuted the allegation of the MP concerning the Utilization Certificate, saying that there was a condition in the said project that the money sanctioned would go directly to the contractors, that is the Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) and to which the State government had agreed. Likewise the BHEL had submitted the UC to the department and the Planning department had submitted it to the Ministry on time. 

Meanwhile the Report of the Controller and Auditor General of India, 2006 has highlighted on the gross negligence on the part of the State Power Department. The report revealed a loss of revenue to the tune of Rs 17.83 crores during the period 2001-02 and 2005-06 due to short billing. The department has stated that the short billing is the result of incorrect meter reading, average billing due to defective meters even as 1860 digital energy meters (electronic) procured during 1999-2000 and 2001, valued at Rs.37.01 lakhs lay idle in Electric Store Division, Dimapur. The failure on the part of the department to replace faulty or damaged meters in the last five years was also chalked out in the report which also added that the Department continued to bill the consumers on an average basis.  The report also revealed the misappropriation of Rs. 16 lakhs in three cases during 2001 and 2005 due to lack of proper financial control at the Division/Sub Division level in the revenue collection and deposition.

A source from the Power department also admitted to the slack on the part of the department saying that the weakness was created because the Civil and Electric sectors were not coordinating properly. Inner conflict among the officers of the department and political interference was affecting the efficiency of the power department while saying that the State and the department should stop looking to the Centre for help when they were unable to perform satisfactorily. “It is the responsibility of the father who is the head of the family, to provide for his family” he emphasized adding there was a need to revamp the whole system and do away with the negligence. On the Tehok Mini-hydro Project, the source said that it was a mistake of the department as the Centre was ready to give out funds but work was not being done. He said that though there had been some hitches due to some land problem, the decision to stop the release of fund by Centre was because “we have not done anything” and added that “everyone from the Chief Engineer to the Minister in charge” needed to do more. At the same time sources from the Power department expressed the lack of man power in the department which was responsible for much of the inefficiency saying that the department had been perusing the government not to keep labourers on work charge but as maintenance and operational staff. The department was continuously creating new assets and these assets of the Department needed to be maintained by a permanent maintenance staff. Taking stock of the overall scenario of power department in the state, the source summarized that the state needed a strong political will without which the future of the state’s power scenario seemed very bleak. “We can earn huge revenue from the state’s power sector, provided the politicians are sincere” added the departmental source.

Morung Express News