Tangedco officials warned of criminal actions. Here’s why

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) threatened assistant and junior engineers of disciplinary action and prosecution for offences relating to encroachment under criminal law if they are found to have granted or aided or abetted in granting approval for effecting electricity service connection for a property located in a waterbody.

In a memo, the chief engineer of the commercial wing of the Tangedco directed officials to obtain an undertaking from every application seeking electricity service connection that the concerned property to which electricity service connection is sought is not located in the waterbody.

The undertaking should be either be in Tamil or English and confirmation of the undertaking should be reconfirmed by sending an SMS and OTP to the applicant to confirm as well.

It directed the field engineers to ensure that the relevant property has not been notified as a waterbody as published on the official website - Tamil Nilam. The officials should physically inspect the site so as to confirm that the property is not located on the water body on registration of the application. If any doubt arises, it said that the official should make an entry to that effect in the online portal and an office note for the same should be prepared and placed on record.

Citing the Madras High Court on waterbodies encroachment on January 21 this year, the memo said that the official found to have granted approval for effecting electricity service connection for a property located in the waterbody should be liable for disciplinary action and prosecution for offences relating to encroachment under criminal law.