Taking significant step in ongoing tussle for power in state, Goa CM Sawant orders to restore current for civilian use

News Bharati    03-Oct-2019
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Panaji, October 03: Even as Goa continues to reel under multiple power failures, an ongoing tussle between the state power department and other state government agencies over non-payment of dues has forced Chief Minister Pramod Sawant to intervene.
 
Sawant on Thursday directed Power Minister Nilesh Cabral to restore power to a market maintained by the Corporation of the City of Panaji, after power department officials on Tuesday snapped electrical supply to the market, a facility which owes around Rs 5 crore in power bill arrears.
 
 
The power department has also threatened to cut power supply to the Public Works Department-run Opa water filtration plant, which supplies water to large parts of North Goa district if it does not pay dues to the tune of Rs 30 crore.
 
“The overall outstanding dues owed to the department are about Rs 323 crore. We are only following procedure by first issuing notice and then taking follow up action,” the power department noted.
 
Last month, the department had snapped the electricity connection at a local police station for defaulting dues, before the Chief Minister’s Office was forced to intervene and renew the power connection to the police station. On Tuesday, on the request of the Panaji municipal corporation’s mayor Uday Madkaikar, Sawant instructed the Power Department to renew electrical supply to the market.