The Times of India               26.11.2010

Civic body pays Rs 1.46 cr to PSEB

LUDHIANA: Careless attitude of Municipal Corporation (MC) officials has proved an expensive affair for state exchequer as it paid around Rs 1.46 crore to the Punjab State Electricity Board, now Punjab State Power Corporation Limited, from 1996 to 2000 in the form of fines. As officials did not present their case in front of the power department, they had to face penalties in different cases.

The MC authorities turned a deaf ear to the recommendation of the audit department to take action against the officers who were responsible for this financial loss. The department raised irregularities with the MC time to time but the authorities neither took any action against their irresponsible officers nor issued directions to the staff for performing their duty carefully.

In the audit report of 2006-07, the department raised objections to the payment of Rs 15.86 lakh to the power department in the form of fine because the officers of the Zone B had connected the power supply illegally instead of taking permission from the power department. Despite recommendation from the audit department, the MC officials did not take action against the officer.

The audit department had raised objections in around 37 such matters where the MC had to face the financial loss because of the carelessness of its own staff. In a few cases, MC officials paid the penalties but did not present the report of the power department to explain why these penalties were levied on them. Rohit Sabharwal, a city resident and president of Anti Corruption and Crime Investigation cell, had sought the information.

"It is our duty to bring up irregularities in front of the MC authorities so as to save the public money but the failure of the MC officials in bringing reforms has resulted in such heavy losses to the corporation's financial status," said DS Bhalla, deputy controller local audit. Sources revealed that MC officials did not put up their case strongly in front of the dispute redressal committee of the power department.