6 TIMES CITY SATURDAY, JULY 4, 2015 White paper...

1
Remembrance S. AMAR SINGH SAWHNEY (13.04.1939 - 04.07.2005) It is 10th years you suddenly left us. No words can express our grief of loosing you. Fondly remembered and deeply missed by family members and dear ones. Today we pay our humble tribute and respectful homage to your noble soul. Amar Travels (India) 93-94, Mohan Singh Place, Connaught Place, New Delhi-01. Ph. 41004200. Deeply remembered by: All Family, Relatives & Friends. Ph. 25434983, 25110187. Fond Hundredth Birthday Remembrance ADVOCATE JAGDISH KALRA - PREM KAUR Gurdip, Gurmant, Kiran Kirti, Bikram, Poonam, Binny, Vidhi, Mehak, Dhruv B-25 Nizamudin West New Delhi-110013 In Loving Memory of Mrs. Arpana Singh Time may pass, fade away But memories of you will always stay. Loved and remembered by one and all. (Singh Family) Mrs Satyawati Chhillar 15-03-1956 to 4-07-2004 You are inspiration for us & still live in our heart. Miss u every day & every moment Poonam, Preeti, Pooja, Itti, Dheeraj, Neeraj & whole chhillar family. Shaheed Hira Kumar Jha "Second-in-Command (CRPF)" On this day a year ago, you made the supreme sacrifice in the cause of your duty while exhibiting highest standards of selfless service, dedication, camaraderie and leadership during Ops CHAKRA. A Gallant & an outstanding Officer, a loving friend, a caring father and a beloved husband, you will always remain with us in our heart & souls. May your Soul Rest in Eternal Peace. 31st Batch Officers of CRPF PRAYER MEETING RASAM PAGDI OBITUARY THE TIMES OF INDIA, NEW DELHI SATURDAY, JULY 4, 2015 6 TIMES CITY New Delhi: Delhi govern- ment’s initiative to bring transparency into Delhi’s pow- er sector, a white paper, has called for removal of the pre- sent chairperson and mem- bers of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC). The white paper com- missioned by the government to examine the power situation in Delhi prior to the AAP gov- ernment alleges that the DERC chairperson and members failed to protect consumer in- terest which constitutes mis- conduct under the Electricity Act. The white paper also says that the government failed to keep a check on the discoms’ expenditure or high power purchase costs. Earlier this year, the AAP government had decided to bring out the white paper un- der a one-time committee, headed by former DERC chair- person Berjinder Singh. While the report is not yet final, it has been submitted to the govern- ment for scrutiny. Sources in the government indicated it was yet to be discussed follow- ing which an action taken re- port would be formed. Prema- ture findings of the report say that “there should have been a case for reduction in electrici- ty tariff during the years 2011 to 2013 as nearly 80% of cost of distribution of electricity is power purchase cost.” The white paper states that following numerous billing-re- lated complaints, the Delhi government had asked DERC whether the billing software of discoms had been checked by an expert from the body. DERC refused to reply, saying that it is a “quasi-judicial autonomous statutory” body. “Refusal of DERC to give a reply on merits clearly shows that before or- dering hefty increases in tariff and creating a large regulatory asset which had the effect of virtually more than doubling the tariff from 2011 to 2013, it did not verify genuineness of the costly purchases of short- term power by the discoms which were prima facie at pric- es much higher than market prices,” the report says. Singh's report also says that from financial year 2011 onwards, the average yearly rates of short-term electricity purchased by the discoms have been “consistently much high- er, often by more than 50%” as compared to the average yearly rate of electricity sold in the In- dian Energy Exchange. The committee has con- cluded that it is under consid- eration of the government of NCT of Delhi as to whether the “serious omissions” on the part of DERC which resulted in its failure to protect consum- er interest and calls for “action for removal of the Chairman and members who were party to the tariff orders passed in 2011 to 2013”. Says Commission Failed To Protect Consumer Interest SCRUTINY OF POWER SECTOR White paper attacks DERC New Delhi: Defending chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s exorbitant electricity bill for the month of June, power min- ister Satyendar Jain on Friday said that his connection is used for official purposes. He suggested checking of power bills of MPs to see their usage for office-related work and how many had commercial connections. “You may think the bill is very high, but go to the CM’s house and see how many peo- ple visit him every day and how many air-conditioners have been installed. He lives in a room without an AC. You are talking about the area where he meets the public. Tomor- row you will say my office’s power bill is too high. If you look at NDMC areas, there are about 400 MPs living there and running offices in their houses where scores of people meet them. Even they should change their meters to com- mercial connections,” said Jain. The electricity meter in- stalled at Kejriwal’s residence is a domestic connection, but used for official work. Power sector officials suggested it should be a commercial con- nection. This would lead to higher bills, as commercial tariffs are almost double of do- mestic tariffs. Sources said Ta- ta Power Delhi was planning to send a notice to the CM’s res- idence to change the connec- tion to commercial and charge such tariffs with retrospective effect from April. Meanwhile, Congress and BJP have both accused the AAP government of wasting public money for personal comfort. “AAP members had said they will not indulge in luxury and live like common men. What are they doing now?” asked DPCC president Ajay Maken. BJP leader Vijen- der Gupta also attacked the CM. “People don’t know the re- al face of AAP,” he said. NOT THAT HIGH Electricity bill official, CM doesn’t even have AC: Jain New Delhi: Arvind Kejri- wal-headed Aam Aadmi Par- ty government on Friday de- fended in the Supreme Court its decision to issue a circular threatening to initiate crimi- nal defamation proceedings against people, including media, for insinuations against the chief minister and government officials. But unsure of the circu- lar’s legal sanctity at a time when Kejriwal himself had moved the SC challenging the constitutional validity of criminal defamation, the Delhi government left it to the court’s wisdom and said the circular would be with- drawn if the courts found fault with it. “In the event the SC is of the view that the circular is contrary to law or otherwise unnecessary, the govern- ment re- spectfully submits that the same will be with- drawn,” the Delhi govern- ment’s af- fidavit said. The Delhi government had issued a circular on May 6 asking all its officials to lodge a complaint with the principal secretary (home) if they come across any news article which damages the reputation of the chief min- ister or any other minister or the government. It was stayed by the SC on May 14 when the court also asked how the government issued such a circular when the CM had himself filed a petition seeking scrapping of the criminal defamation law. “On one hand, he claims to suffer but, on the other hand, intends to pursue cases of criminal defamation against others. His government should explain why such a circular was issued,” the court had asked the AAP government. In an affidavit, the city government said, “Our mo- tive was not to encourage cases of defamation but to provide adequate safeguards to prevent its misuse.” If SC says, defamation order will be withdrawn New Delhi: AAP MLAs on Friday met chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to ask for a pay hike on the lines of MPs seeking a raise of 100% in their salaries. A dele- gation of 20-odd legislators met the CM in the morning and said that either their salaries are increased or they be provid- ed with financial assistance for setting up offices in their constituencies. Kejri- wal reportedly said he would look into the matter. “Our monthly salary is Rs 53,500 of which Rs 12,000 is the basic. In addition to this, each MLA is given Rs 30,000 as re- imbursement for two data entry oper- ators. We are not entitled to fuel, phone, water, electricity or ration. This sum is difficult to manage with. Just renting of- fice space costs Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000. We are left with nothing to meet personal ex- penses,” said an MLA. Salaries of MLAs were last raised in 2011, which was Rs 32,000 then. Meanwhile, BJP slammed the move saying that AAP is only looking at ways to raise taxes and waste public funds. OP Sharma, MLA from Vishwas Nagar, said that AAP MLAs should realize that are here to serve the public. Vijender Gupta, MLA from Rohini and leader of Opposition, said that the party had already wasted money on ad- vertisements, 21 parliamentary secre- taries, etc. “This is just a gimmick. The party has set them up to ask for this raise because they want to keep their MLAs happy,” he said. AAP MLAs seek pay hike from Kejriwal TIMES NEWS NETWORK AmitAnand.Choudhary @timesgroup.com Arvind Kejriwal TIMES NEWS NETWORK TIMES NEWS NETWORK Published for the Proprietors, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., by Balraj Arora at Times House, 7,Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi -110002 and printed by him at Times Of India Press, 13, Site IV, Industrial Area, Sahibabad (UP), Dainik Jagran Press, Plot NO. C2/2-1, Selaqui Industrial Area, Dehradun(UTTARAKHAND) and Dainik Jagran Press , Biharman Nagla, Pilibhit Bypass Road, Bareilly (UP). Regd . Office,: Dr. Dadabhai Naoroji Road, Mumbai-400001. Editor (Delhi Market) : Arindam Sengupta – responsible for selection of news under PRB Act, @ All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of Publisher is prohibited RNI NO : 508/57 Air Charge : Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai, Nagpur & via Rs.5.00, Leh Rs.2.00,. Price in Nepal : NEP Rs.15.00 Made in New Delhi Volume 66 No. 158.

Transcript of 6 TIMES CITY SATURDAY, JULY 4, 2015 White paper...

Page 1: 6 TIMES CITY SATURDAY, JULY 4, 2015 White paper …epdemo.timesgroup.com/ePaperFileServer/TOI/Delhi/04-07-2015/Page6/... · Vijender Gupta, MLA from Rohini and leader of Opposition,

Remembrance

S. AMAR SINGH SAWHNEY

(13.04.1939 - 04.07.2005)

It is 10th years you suddenly left us. Nowords can express ourgrief of loosing you.Fondly remembered and

deeply missed by family members and dearones. Today we pay our humble tribute and respectful homage to your noble soul. Amar Travels (India)93-94, Mohan Singh Place, ConnaughtPlace, New Delhi-01. Ph. 41004200. Deeplyremembered by: All Family, Relatives & Friends. Ph. 25434983, 25110187.

Fond Hundredth Birthday Remembrance

ADVOCATE JAGDISH KALRA - PREM KAUR

Gurdip, Gurmant, KiranKirti, Bikram, Poonam,Binny, Vidhi, Mehak,Dhruv B-25 NizamudinWest New Delhi-110013

In Loving Memory of

Mrs. Arpana Singh

Time may pass, fadeaway But memories of

you will always stay.Loved and remembered

by one and all. (Singh Family)

Mrs Satyawati Chhillar15-03-1956 to 4-07-2004

You are inspirationfor us & still live inour heart. Miss u everyday & every momentPoonam, Preeti, Pooja,

Itti, Dheeraj, Neeraj & whole chhillar family.

Shaheed Hira Kumar Jha"Second-in-Command (CRPF)"

On this day a year ago,you made the supremesacrifice in the cause ofyour duty while exhibiting highest

standards of selfless service, dedication, camaraderie and leadership during Ops CHAKRA. A Gallant & an outstanding Officer, a loving friend, a caring father and abeloved husband, you will always remain

with us in our heart & souls. May your SoulRest in Eternal Peace.

31st Batch Officers of CRPF

PRAYER MEETING

RASAM PAGDI

OBITUARY

THE TIMES OF INDIA, NEW DELHISATURDAY, JULY 4, 20156 TIMES CITY

New Delhi: Delhi govern-ment’s initiative to bringtransparency into Delhi’s pow-er sector, a white paper, hascalled for removal of the pre-sent chairperson and mem-bers of the Delhi ElectricityRegulatory Commission(DERC). The white paper com-missioned by the governmentto examine the power situationin Delhi prior to the AAP gov-ernment alleges that the DERCchairperson and membersfailed to protect consumer in-terest which constitutes mis-conduct under the ElectricityAct. The white paper also saysthat the government failed tokeep a check on the discoms’expenditure or high powerpurchase costs.

Earlier this year, the AAPgovernment had decided to

bring out the white paper un-der a one-time committee,headed by former DERC chair-person Berjinder Singh. Whilethe report is not yet final, it hasbeen submitted to the govern-ment for scrutiny. Sources inthe government indicated itwas yet to be discussed follow-ing which an action taken re-port would be formed. Prema-ture findings of the report saythat “there should have been acase for reduction in electrici-ty tariff during the years 2011to 2013 as nearly 80% of cost ofdistribution of electricity ispower purchase cost.”

The white paper states thatfollowing numerous billing-re-lated complaints, the Delhigovernment had asked DERCwhether the billing software ofdiscoms had been checked byan expert from the body. DERCrefused to reply, saying that it is

a “quasi-judicial autonomousstatutory” body. “Refusal ofDERC to give a reply on meritsclearly shows that before or-dering hefty increases in tariffand creating a large regulatoryasset which had the effect ofvirtually more than doublingthe tariff from 2011 to 2013, itdid not verify genuineness ofthe costly purchases of short-

term power by the discomswhich were prima facie at pric-es much higher than marketprices,” the report says.

Singh's report also saysthat from financial year 2011onwards, the average yearlyrates of short-term electricitypurchased by the discoms havebeen “consistently much high-er, often by more than 50%” ascompared to the average yearlyrate of electricity sold in the In-dian Energy Exchange.

The committee has con-cluded that it is under consid-eration of the government ofNCT of Delhi as to whether the“serious omissions” on thepart of DERC which resultedin its failure to protect consum-er interest and calls for “actionfor removal of the Chairmanand members who were partyto the tariff orders passed in2011 to 2013”.

Says Commission Failed To Protect Consumer Interest

SCRUTINY OF POWER SECTOR

White paper attacks DERC

New Delhi: Defending chiefminister Arvind Kejriwal’sexorbitant electricity bill forthe month of June, power min-ister Satyendar Jain on Fridaysaid that his connection isused for official purposes. Hesuggested checking of powerbills of MPs to see their usagefor office-related work andhow many had commercialconnections.

“You may think the bill isvery high, but go to the CM’shouse and see how many peo-ple visit him every day andhow many air-conditionershave been installed. He lives inaroom without an AC. You aretalking about the area wherehe meets the public. Tomor-row you will say my office’spower bill is too high. If you

look at NDMC areas, there areabout 400 MPs living there andrunning offices in theirhouses where scores of peoplemeet them. Even they shouldchange their meters to com-mercial connections,” saidJain.

The electricity meter in-stalled at Kejriwal’s residenceis a domestic connection, butused for official work. Power

sector officials suggested itshould be a commercial con-nection. This would lead tohigher bills, as commercialtariffs are almost double of do-mestic tariffs. Sources said Ta-ta Power Delhi was planningto send a notice to the CM’s res-idence to change the connec-tion to commercial and chargesuch tariffs with retrospectiveeffect from April.

Meanwhile, Congress andBJP have both accused theAAP government of wastingpublic money for personalcomfort. “AAP members hadsaid they will not indulge inluxury and live like commonmen. What are they doingnow?” asked DPCC presidentAjay Maken. BJP leader Vijen-der Gupta also attacked theCM. “People don’t know the re-al face of AAP,” he said.

NOT THAT HIGH

Electricity bill official, CMdoesn’t even have AC: Jain

New Delhi: Arvind Kejri-wal-headed Aam Aadmi Par-ty government on Friday de-fended in the Supreme Courtits decision to issue a circularthreatening to initiate crimi-nal defamation proceedingsagainst people, includingmedia, for insinuationsagainst the chief ministerand government officials.

But unsure of the circu-lar’s legal sanctity at a timewhen Kejriwal himself hadmoved the SC challenging theconstitutional validity ofcriminal defamation, theDelhi government left it tothe court’s wisdom and saidthe circular would be with-drawn if the courts foundfault with it.

“In the event the SC is ofthe view that the circular iscontrary to law or otherwiseunnecessary, the govern-

ment re-spectfullysubmitsthat thesame willbe with-drawn,”the Delhigovern-ment’s af-

fidavit said.The Delhi government

had issued a circular on May6 asking all its officials tolodge a complaint with theprincipal secretary (home) ifthey come across any newsarticle which damages thereputation of the chief min-ister or any other minister orthe government.

It was stayed by the SC onMay 14 when the court alsoasked how the governmentissued such a circular whenthe CM had himself filed apetition seeking scrapping ofthe criminal defamation law.“On one hand, he claims tosuffer but, on the other hand,intends to pursue cases ofcriminal defamation againstothers. His governmentshould explain why such acircular was issued,” thecourt had asked the AAP government.

In an affidavit, the citygovernment said, “Our mo-tive was not to encouragecases of defamation but toprovide adequate safeguardsto prevent its misuse.”

If SC says,defamationorder will bewithdrawn

New Delhi: AAP MLAs on Friday metchief minister Arvind Kejriwal to askfor a pay hike on the lines of MPs seekinga raise of 100% in their salaries. A dele-gation of 20-odd legislators met the CMin the morning and said that either theirsalaries are increased or they be provid-ed with financial assistance for settingup offices in their constituencies. Kejri-wal reportedly said he would look intothe matter.

“Our monthly salary is Rs 53,500 ofwhich Rs 12,000 is the basic. In additionto this, each MLA is given Rs 30,000 as re-imbursement for two data entry oper-ators. We are not entitled to fuel, phone,water, electricity or ration. This sum isdifficult to manage with. Just renting of-fice space costs Rs 15,000-Rs 20,000. Weare left with nothing to meet personal ex-penses,” said an MLA.

Salaries of MLAs were last raised in2011, which was Rs 32,000 then.

Meanwhile, BJP slammed the movesaying that AAP is only looking at waysto raise taxes and waste public funds. OPSharma, MLA from Vishwas Nagar, saidthat AAP MLAs should realize that arehere to serve the public.

Vijender Gupta, MLA from Rohiniand leader of Opposition, said that theparty had already wasted money on ad-vertisements, 21 parliamentary secre-taries, etc. “This is just a gimmick. Theparty has set them up to ask for this raisebecause they want to keep their MLAshappy,” he said.

AAP MLAsseek pay hikefrom Kejriwal

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

[email protected]

Arvind Kejriwal

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Published for the Proprietors, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., by Balraj Arora at Times House, 7,Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi -110002 and printed by him at Times Of India Press, 13, Site IV, Industrial Area, Sahibabad (UP), Dainik Jagran Press, Plot NO. C2/2-1, Selaqui Industrial Area, Dehradun(UTTARAKHAND) and Dainik JagranPress , Biharman Nagla, Pilibhit Bypass Road, Bareilly (UP). Regd . Office,: Dr. Dadabhai Naoroji Road, Mumbai-400001. Editor (Delhi Market) : Arindam Sengupta – responsible for selection of news under

PRB Act, @ All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of Publisher is prohibitedRNI NO : 508/57

Air Charge : Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai, Nagpur & via Rs.5.00, Leh Rs.2.00,. Price in Nepal : NEP Rs.15.00Made in New Delhi

Volume 66 No. 158.