Chennai: With the northeast monsoon likely to strike by the second week of October, Tamil Nadu Electrical Inspectorate (TNEI) on Monday urged the power consumers to take protective measures. In a press statement, the chief electrical inspector to government urged the public to stay away from transformers, pillar-boxes, electrical poles and government electrical appliances.

The chief inspector also urged the public to approach Tamil Nadu Electricity Board officials to trim tree branches touching overhead high tension cable lines and suggested the public only to use ISI marked electrical appliances, cables and wires.

The statement had 31-point guideline for people on safety measures that have to be taken during day-to-day life throughout the season.

“During the monsoon period, cyclone or flood can cause major damage to the property and there can be loss of life to the human being, animals and in case of short circuits switch off the main immediately:, said the statement urging
farmers and poultry traders not to secure the live stocks to electric poles and cables.

Meanwhile the top brass of the Tangedco have also instructed the field engineers to take stocks of cables, meters, mini pillars and transformers that needs replacement and also suggested its ward offices to stock cables and fuses to attend power cuts due to water logging in low lying parts of Chennai.

NCLT rejects private firms’ petition against Tangedco

In an interim relief to the cash starved Tangedco, the single bench of National company law tribunal (NCLT), Chennai on Monday rejected the petitions by private companies that sought corporate insolvency process against Tangedco.
Three companies of the Hyderabad-based group - Arkay Energy (Rameswaram Ltd), Ind Bharath Power Gencom and Ind Bharath Thermal Power Ltd, which have supplied power to Tangedco, have approached the NCLT under Section 9, Rule 6 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, to recover dues totalling Rs 157,85,71,585.

The three have committed over 640 MW of power capacity to Tangedco to feed the grid and had participated in tenders floated by utility for power supply.

K. Anantha Padmanabha Swamy, who heard the petition said that the petitioner has reached the conclusion at a premature stage as unless the real figures with respect to the principal amount is determined, it would be difficult to ascertain the principle amount and accrued interest. Pointing out that there are queries unanswered in disputes, the adjudicating authority dismissing the petitions also directed the registry to communicate orders to operational creditors and corporate debtors.