Mumbai, Feb 19: A leading consumer organisation, the Mumbai Grahak Panchayat (MGP) has appealed to the state government to stay the proceedings of the Madhav Godbole energy review committee on the grounds that its terms of reference are almost the same as the statutory functions of the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC). The MGP has appealed to the state government to seek immediate legal advice from the advocate general and "pending advice, stay the proceedings of the Godbole committee forthwith."The Godbole committee has been asked to review the power purchase agreement (PPA) between the Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB) and the Dabhol Power Company (DPC). It will also examine the cost of power supplied by the DPC and its financial implications on the MSEB and review overall demand and supply of power in the state.
"As a matter of fact, all these terms of reference can be found under section 22(a),(b), 25 and 29 of the Electricity Regulatory Commission Act.
Most of these provisions are mandatory in nature. This means that no other committee or even the government can take any decision on these issues," MGP director Shirish Deshpande said.
Mr Deshpande, who has written a letter to chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, said that the issues referred to in the Godbole committee are under the "exclusive jurisdiction of the MERC and thus the appointment of this committee is contrary in letter and spirit to the various provisions of the Electricity Regulatory Commission Act. It also amounts to a by-passing of a statutory body like MERC."
Mr Deshpande said that if the Godbole committee proceeds with the hearings and gives its report nothwithstanding the necessary legal position, "the government will not be able to act on it since under the Electricity Regulatory Commission Act, it is only MERC which can decide/resolve these issues under its statutory powers."
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