Linemen forcing us to pay for transformer repair: Ryots
Ironically, the linemen also asked the farmers to take the transformer to the private party and bring it back after repair.
The transformer placed on a field by Tangedco linemen for safe keeping
RANIPET: While many government departments are resorting to different austerity measures, Tangedco linemen at Nemili in the Ranipet district have also toed the line by reportedly asking farmers to shell out for the repair of a transformer by a private party.
Ironically, the linemen also asked the farmers to take the transformer to the private party and bring it back after repair.
A case in point is the transformer at SS3 at Karanavoor in the area, which was impaired over 15 days ago. “Though we informed the local Junior Engineer and electricity board workers, there was no immediate action,” said Muniandy, one of the affected farmers.
What irked them was that harvest-ready paddy crops started withering due to lack of water in the absence of power supply for nearly a fortnight.
“As even ordinary crops can’t survive without water for even a couple of days, one can easily understand what will happen to the paddy in such situations,” Muniandy added.
“Though the linemen tried to repair the equipment, they could not succeed in their attempt. Hence, they asked farmers to take it to Timiri, some distance away from the village, to get it repaired by a private electrical contractor,” another affected farmer added.
“With already Rs 5,000 being collected from the affected farmers for various reasons, the linemen have asked for an additional amount of around Rs 15,000 for repair work,” Muniandy said.
When the issue came to the notice of a senior Tangedco official, he contacted farmer R Subash and told him that no EB staff has taken the money. Farmers were sore that this was not the first time linmen were acting like this.
“Even though the Sholingur MLA AM Munirathinam was informed, the menace remains unsolved,” he added.
Meanwhile, linemen took away the impaired transformer. They placed it in a field in nearby Siruvalayam village for safekeeping but were yet to record a transformer ‘failure’ complaint, which was mandatory for official action.
A group of 15 affected farmers visited the office of the senior engineer of TNEB, Vellore, on Monday and refused to budge till they were provided with a new transformer, sources said. Muniandy added that a transformer was loaded onto a Tangedco vehicle and sent to replace the affected one around 6 pm on Monday.