KSEB ordered to pay Rs 4.49 lakh to Kochi woman after 24-yr delay in electricity connection transfer

The Electricity Ombudsman has ordered the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) to compensate a Kochi woman, with Rs 4.49 lakh for an electricity connection transfer that took nearly 25 years to complete. The Ombudsman also mandated KSEB to pay 18% penal interest on the security deposit amount that remained unresolved for over two decades.

The order was issued in favour of Reetha P. Antony, a resident of Thammanam in Kochi, who purchased her house in 1998 and applied the same year for transferring the electricity connection ownership and converting the supply from single-phase to three-phase. She had paid Rs 9,200, including a Rs 3,000 security deposit, at the KSEB’s Palarivattom office on March 13, 1998.

Though the three-phase connection was provided within four months, the ownership transfer was never completed. According to the complaint, Reetha made repeated visits to the KSEB office over the years, but officials allegedly continued delaying the process citing various reasons.

The matter became more serious after she sought details through the Right to Information (RTI) Act. In response, KSEB reportedly stated that it had not received her application and that no security deposit had been collected. Officials also claimed that the documents submitted by her were not available in office records.

After years of follow-up, the ownership transfer was finally completed only on November 3, 2022, 8,987 days after the original application was submitted.

Even then, the issue related to the security deposit remained unresolved. Following further complaints and inquiries, KSEB credited Rs 2,950 to Reetha’s account in February 2023, leaving out Rs 50 from the original deposit amount. An RTI reply later reportedly stated that the amount had been credited in 1957, a response that eventually pushed the complainant to approach the Electricity Ombudsman.

After examining the case and hearing both sides, the Ombudsman found serious lapses on the part of KSEB officials and ruled in favour of the complainant. The board was directed to pay compensation of Rs 4,49,350 for the delay in transferring ownership, calculated at Rs 50 per day for 8,987 days.

The Ombudsman also ordered KSEB to pay 18% penal interest on the security deposit amount for 24 years and refund Rs 4,700 collected under the OYEC deposit scheme along with applicable bank interest from 1998 to 2026.

The order further instructed KSEB to investigate the lapses that led to the extraordinary delay and ensure such incidents are not repeated in future.