MADHU SUDAN MITTAL Vs. JHARKHAND STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE State of Jharkhand was created in the month of November, 2000 and this petition has been filed on 1.5.2001 raising the grievance about the electricity supply position in the State of Jharkhand. Several orders have been passed in the last 12 years so that the electricity supply in the State of Jharkhand may improve, but the sorry state of affairs continued for almost more than 11 years. It will be worthwhile to mention here that the State of Jharkhand is having the benefit of getting power supply from the Damodar Valley Corporation. Again and again, before this Court on several occasions it has been stated that the Jharkhand State is having not only the enough electricity, but sometimes, it is with surplus of the electricity. On the basis of such pleas, even it has prayed that the supply from the D.V.C. may be discontinued, which is being continued because of the orders passed in this petition and those prayers of the Jharkhand State Electricity Board as well as the D.V.C have been rejected on more than one occasion. The Court is not the expert in technical matters, and therefore, the Court have to take the expert opinion whenever it is needed and then to rely on the expert opinion with the help of the another expert opinion if needed, in case, the expert opinion prima facie does not satisfy the Court.

(2.) IN this case, it will suffice to state that even after more than 11 years, this Court had to pass several strong orders against the Jharkhand State Electricity Board and we even directed to the Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission to give its own opinion. The Court, in the order dated 23.7.2012 requested the Commission to expedite the proceedings of improvement in the power supply and for which, some schemes may be given to the Jharkhand State Electricity Board and it was noticed that the Commission has power to impose the penalty upon the Jharkhand State Electricity Board under Section 142 of the Electricity Act, 2003. Again and again, it was shown that there is a problem for the transmission resulting into problem in distribution of the electricity. This Court also directed the State to formulate a policy and undertake to complete all tasks relating to electricity matters pending with it expeditiously and submit it to the Court with respect to the matter pending with the State Government for strengthening the electricity supply in the State of Jharkhand.

(3.) IT is also submitted that in the month of June, 2011, revenue receipt of the Electricity Board was Rs. 147 Crores and it has increased to Rs.210 Crores. So far as the power theft/ seepage are concerned that was 46 per cent and it has come down to 32 per cent against the national average of power loss of 20 per cent. The Chairman of the Board is hopeful that the power loss will be reduced substantially in a few months only in view of the fact that now the State/ Board both have decided to give the distribution of the electricity to the companies which will certainly take care of this issue very effectively resulting it to the less loss to the State Electricity Board.