(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer) Pulwama- In a glaring example of alleged selective enforcement, the Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited (KPDCL) in Kashmir has come under sharp criticism for failing to recover over Rs 11 crore in electricity dues from a private industrial unit in Lassipora, Pulwama-while continuing to disconnect power supply to poor domestic consumers for comparatively minor outstanding amounts.

News agency KNT, quoting sources in PDD, reported that the defaulting unit, 'Mir Steel Rolling Mill Private Limited,' has accumulated arrears exceeding Rs 11 crore over an extended period. Despite the staggering dues, authorities have reportedly taken no significant recovery action against the now-defunct unit.

A senior PDD official confirmed that Mir Steel Rolling Mill, located in the Lassipora Industrial Estate, owes the department Rs 11 crore. Although the unit is currently non-functional, the official said that liabilities are still increasing due to penalties imposed on the unpaid balance.

“Every month, a late payment surcharge of approximately Rs 11 lakh is being added as interest, while an additional Rs 4 lakh accrues under demand charges,” the official said, adding that failure to settle dues is costing the defaulter an extra Rs 15 lakh per month in total.

The case has raised serious questions about the PDD's enforcement mechanism, particularly its alleged bias in acting swiftly against small consumers while letting major defaulters continue unchecked.“Poor and middle-class households are having their power supply snapped over pending bills of Rs 500 or Rs 1,000, but influential industrialists with crores in unpaid dues face no action. This double standard is unacceptable,” said a local rights activist in Pulwama.

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Sources further disclosed that Mir Steel is not the only industrial unit in Lassipora with large arrears. Several other establishments are said to have defaulted on payments, with no concrete recovery strategy visible on the part of the department.

“Electricity is a basic right, and the PDD must enforce its rules uniformly. Let the law be the same for all-rich or poor,” said a local.

With unpaid bills multiplying, the fiscal strain on the already burdened power sector in Jammu and Kashmir is only expected to worsen. (KNT)

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