The Namakkal District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DCDRC) on Tuesday directed the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) to pay ₹1,38,250 to a farmer towards compensation and discrepancy in service.
V. Loganathan (73) of Mohanur Road in Namakkal Town deposited ₹3 lakh with Tangedco in August 2018 to get a new power connection for his farmland under the Tatkal scheme. However, due to delays in providing the connection, he wrote a letter to the Chief Engineer in Karur in June 2020, requesting a refund. Despite several attempts to follow up on his request, TANGEDCO did not return the money. As a result, in October 2023, he filed a case against TANGEDCO officials with the commission. Finally, the money was refunded in November 2023.
DCDRC Commissioner V. Ramaraj said Tangedco should have returned the money within three months after the farmer submitted a letter in June 2020. Hence the farmer is entitled to receive ₹83,250 interest for 37-month delay and a compensation of ₹50,000 for mental agony and hardship, the commissioner said. Tangedco was also asked to pay ₹5,000 to the farmer towards litigation expenses.
