What you should know about electricity security deposits

According to Sec. 5.1 of the Security Deposit Regulations, 2007  issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission, domestic electricity consumers in Mysore are required to pay a Security Deposit to Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Company. This security deposit is two times (the cost of 45 units plus the fixed charge).

According to Interest on Security Deposit Regulations, 2005 issued by KERC, CESC should pay interest on this deposit at the bank rate as on April 1. This annual interest should be credited to the consumer before the end of June. The details of the deposit and the interest paid should be given to the consumers along with the bill in the month in which the interest is adjusted. An excess amount being held as deposit must be refunded to the consumer.

Let us look at a typical domestic consumer with a sanctioned load of 2.5 kW. After the recent revision of electricity tariffs, the monthly fixed charge is Rs. 25 for the first kW of the sanctioned load plus Rs. 35 for each additional kW of sanctioned load. So the fixed charge for a sanctioned load of 2.5 kW is Rs. 77.50. Now, the the cost of electricity is Rs. 2.20/unit (upto 30 units) and Rs. 3.40/unit (for 31-100 units). and so the cost of 45 units is 30x2.20 + 15x3.40 = 117. So the Security Deposit is 2x(117+77.50)=389 Rs. Since the bank rate was 6% on April 1, 2011, CESC should have credited 389x0.06 =  23 Rs. into the consumer's account in his June electricity bill. Note that the deposit amount and the interest on it could be lower in the June, 2011 bill, since the fixed charges and electricity rates were lower then.

In all the electricity bills we have checked, CESC has credited the interest on the Security Deposit in the June electricity bill. But it has not given the amount held by it as deposit, which is violative of the Interest on Security Deposit Regulations, 2005.

Consumers are advised to check their June electricity bills to make sure that the interest on the deposit is being credited to their account. They should also make sure that CESC is not holding an excess amount as deposit and are paying the correct rate of interest. CESC and its predecessors, MESCOM and KEB have collected various amounts at various times as deposits,additional deposits, etc. and CESC may not have a full record of exactly how much amount they are holding as deposit. So, if the consumers have proof of what they have paid in the past, they should make sure that the entire amount is entered into CESC registers.

Prof. S.Sekhar, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Poorly Designed Suburban Bus Stand

The suburban bus stand of Mysore on Bangalore Nilgiri Road has been upgraded at a cost of Rs. 30 crores under JNNURM. MGP has received complaints from the public about the poor conditions prevailing in this expensive bus stand. These conditions appear to be a consequence of numerous defects in the planning, design, execution and maintenance of the facility. It is a matter of concern that the central bus stand which was also upgraded recently at enormous expense under JNNURM also suffers from defects in the planning, design, execution and maintenance. Here are some of the problems faced by the public in the suburban bus stand.

PARKING 

It appears that the basement parking  can hold about 30 cars and several hundred two-wheelers. Even now, it normally appears full. But, most of the commercial establishments scheduled to come up in the new building have not started operation and when they start working and their customers start coming in, there will be no parking space for their vehicles. This shows a lack of proper planning. 

leaking sewage water at underground parking

Due to poor design and execution, raw sewage from overhead pipes is leaking in several places in the basement parking, soiling both people and their vehicles. This is disgusting. The walls are stained by leaking sewage and there are puddles of sewage water in several places. The public and their vehicles have to wade through this muck. The bus stand was touted to be "world class" and this is certainly not what is expected in a world class facility.

The lighting in the underground parking area is very weak  It appears that there is no backup generator and so when there is a power shutdown, the whole place goes pitch dark. It is hard to imagine how the public can park their vehicles or get them out in such a situation. This is poor execution and poor maintenance.

Since the whole parking lot is damp and dark, there are mosquitoes all the time. Persons manning the parking lot must be going through hell every day.

storm water drains clogged with debris

The storm water drains (at the entrances of the parking lot) which are supposed to prevent rain water from entering the underground parking space are clogged with debris and hence are not doing their job. We have received complaints that during rains, there is flooding in the parking lot.

the missing "Cloak Room"

There are no proper directions to the parking lot from the passenger platform. The sign says "Cloak Room" and leads to the parking lot!

BUS BAYS

"Extended" bus bays

Since buses back into the stand to pick up passengers, about 6 feet at the edge of the passenger platform should have been cordoned off  from the public. But it has not been done. As a result of this poor design, there is the distinct possibility that unwary persons standing or walking in this area can be hit by a bus backing into position.

useless raised passenger platforms espcially when it rains

The raised passenger platform projects  8-10 feet out to enable passengers to board the bus from its back entrance. But all the new buses have entrances only in the front. So the purpose of providing this projection is defeated. This is poor design.

The same is true for the roof overhang. If the roof had covered the entire length of the bus, passengers could enter the bus even in heavy rain without getting wet. Now it is not possible. With very little effort, boarding passengers and baggage could have been protected from sun and rain. This again is poor design.

not even a single drain was visible in the entire area

We did not see any drains to remove rain water in the vast area in which the buses stand. Unless perfect camber has been provided, pools of water will form during rains.

BUS ENTRANCE

buses parked haphazardly

Incoming buses stop near the entry to the bus stand disgorging passengers. This is a scene of chaos. Some buses are parked helter-skelter three abreast, passengers are getting down and scooting between other moving buses. It is a wonder people are not run down regularly.  Once again, this is not a good design.

uneven surface near one of the entrances

Both the road and the footpaths near the bus inlet are in bad condition with uneven surface and debris. This is again poor execution and maintenance.

STAIRS AND HANDICAPPED ACCESS

There are several needless stairs. Instead of keeping them at the same level as the passenger platform, the ticket counters have been placed a couple of feet higher leading to needless stairs. 

stairs to....err.. nowhere!

There are also stairs leading to nowhere!  Obviously these stairs led to some place, but the building plan must have changed and now there is a wall at the head of the stairs. This is poor planning indeed.

useless ramps

Ramps have been provided at some places, but as seen in the above photo, there is no ramp from the footpath to the road! Such ramps pay mere lip service to the Persons With Disabilities Act, 1995 and violate the spirit of the law.

LEGALITY OF SHOPPING CENTRE

The land on which the moffusil bus stand has been built is classified as "Traffic and Transportation" in the Revised Comprehensive Development Plan, 2011 for Mysore. According to zoning regulations, only bus stands and parking can be provided in such a zone and  canteens and banking counters (not exceeding 5% of the total area) can be provided with special permission. There is no provision for shops in a Traffic and Transportation zone. Shops have existed for several years next to the Bangalore section of the bus stand and now more shops and restaurants are coming up. Is this not a violation of the zoning regulations?

The detailed project  report for the bus stand, available here (pdf), says "Given the location of the proposed bus terminal and the real estate scenario in the moffusil bus stand, large scale leveraging of the site is possible". It appears that making money has taken precedence over providing quality service to the public. Providing an unnecessary shopping complex has become more important than providing decent parking and safe platforms.

Vishwas Krishna, MGP

Kudos to officials

There is widespread feeling among the public that the government does not respond to their complaints. While this may be true in general, there are many officials certainly who do act upon public complaints. Here are three examples. MGP's complaint about these problems were carried in the local media and the concerned officials have promptly rectified the situation

The bus stand on JLB Road near RTO Circle was dilapidated and ready to collapse any moment. After MGP complained in July, 2011, concerned officials have demolished the bus stand and prevented a potential catastrophe.

The bus stand near Nirmala Convent in V.V. Puram had no seats for a long time.After MGP complained in September, 2011, concerned officials have provided seats for the public.

The road hump on KRS road near CFTRI gate was too high and was causing accidents. After MGP complained in September, 2011, concerned officials have reduced the height of the hump.

We thank these officials.

D.V. Dayanand Sagar, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

Photos from the November 2011 issue of Grahaka Patrike

(D.V.Dayanand Sagar)

The bus stand on JLB Road near RTO Circle was dilapidated and ready to collapse any moment. After GRAHAKA PATRIKE published a photo of this dangerous bus stop (August, 2011) concerned officials have demolished the bus stand and prevented a potential catastrophe.

(D.V.Dayanand Sagar)

The bus stand near Nirmala Convent in V.V. Puram had no seats for a long time.After GRAHAKA PATRIKE published a photo of this bus stop (October, 2011) concerned officials have provided seats for the public.

(D.V.Dayanand Sagar)

The road hump on KRS road near CFTRI gate was too high and was causing accidents. After GRAHAKA PATRIKE published a photo of this dangerous road hump (October, 2011) concerned officials have reduced the height of the hump.

(B.V. Shenoy)

The transformer on Pulikeshi Road (near FTS Circle) has two of its supporting poles on the road itself. This is obstructing both traffic and pedestrians. 

Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa who has been a member of MGP since 1992 has won Saraswati Samman for his novel "Mandra". It is the most prestigious literary award in India.

MUDA Is Still Violating Supreme Court Order

MGP issued a press release recently stating that GPA sale of sites has been declared illegal by the Supreme Court in a judgment given on 11-10-11, but MUDA is still permitting such sales. In response, MUDA has issued a statement justifying its actions. MUDA says that it is only transferring sites to buyers on GPAs registered before 1-1-08. By transferring sites to buyers only on GPAs registered after 1-1-08, it seems to imply that it is in consonance with the Supreme Court ruling.

We beg to disagree. The Supreme Court is clear that all GPA sales are illegal. Therefore, MUDA SHOULD NOT BE TRANSFERRING SITES TO BUYERS MERELY ON THE BASIS OF A GPA, NO MATTER WHEN IT WAS REGISTERED. IT SHOULD DO SO ONLY ON THE BASIS OF A REGISTERED SALE DEED. We draw attention to the relevant passages in paras 16-18 of the Supreme Court judgment.

"16. We therefore reiterate that immovable property can be legally and lawfully transferred/conveyed only by a registered deed of conveyance. Transactions of the nature of  'GPA sales' or 'SA/GPA/WILL transfers' do not convey title and do not amount to transfer, nor can they be recognized or valid mode of transfer of immoveable property...Such transactions cannot be relied upon or made the basis for mutations in municipal or revenue records. What is stated above will apply not only to deeds of conveyance in regard to freehold property but also to transfer of leasehold property. A lease can be validly transferred only under a registered Assignment of Lease. It is time that an end is put to the pernicious practice of SA/GPA/WILL transactions known as GPA sales.

17. It has been submitted that making declaration that GPA sales and SA/GPA/WILL transfers are not legally valid modes of transfer is likely to create hardship to a large number of persons who have entered into such transactions and they should be given sufficient time to regularize the transactions by obtaining deeds of conveyance. It is also submitted that this decision should be made applicable prospectively to avoid hardship.

18. We have merely drawn attention to and reiterated the well-settled legal position that SA/GPA/WILL transactions are not 'transfers' or 'sales' and that such transactions cannot be treated as completed transfers or conveyances. They can continue to be treated as existing agreement of sale. Nothing prevents affected parties from getting registered Deeds of Conveyance to complete their title... If they are entered before this day, they may be relied upon to apply for regularization of allotments/leases by Development Authorities."

P.M. Bhat, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

MUDA Is Once Again Misleading!

We read with interest the reply given by MUDA to the local media concerning our recent press release on the MUDA notification calling for applications from the public for allotment of sites in Lalitadri Nagar, R.T. Nagar and Chamalapura. MUDA claims this reply clarifies the points raised in our press release. It also implies that our complaints are baseless. We take exception to both these statements.

In its "clarification", MUDA has not answered any of the points raised by us or gives misleading answers to our points. To make this claim clear, we reproduce our points and MUDA's "clarifications".

  

1. The announcement does not commit to any specific dates for allotment of sites or for refund of the initial deposit to non-allottees. Since it states that the initial deposit will not earn any interest, it is easy to infer the intentions of MUDA. Huge sums of public money will earn interest to MUDA at the expense of the public.

    To this objection, MUDA has answered that "After the completion of the allotment process, the EMD amount of unsuccessful aspirants will be returned soon." It also says that "the accusation that MUDA has been reaping benefit out of the interest on crores of rupees of money collected from the site aspirants is baseless".

    Even in this "clarification", MUDA does not commit to any return date for the deposits (other than "soon"). It also does not refute the point that it will not pay interest on the deposit. The refusal to pay interest will earn huge amounts for MUDA. It has been reported that about 100,000 applications have been received by MUDA for the three layouts. Assuming that the average cost of a site is Rs. 3 lakhs, each applicant would have paid a deposit of Rs. 30,000. So MUDA has collected Rs. 300 crores in deposits and even if it returns them after one year, it would have earned RS. 30 CRORES as interest on the deposits.

2. The guideline paper issued along with the application form does not show any map of the place and the extent of the readiness of the sites, roads,ÿelectricity, water and UGD lines, etc. So the public have no way of knowing when the sites will be ready. 

    MUDA has chosen not to reply to this point.

3. Item 17 of the rules and regulations states that allotment at R.T.Nagar will be considered for only those who have applied for both R.T.Nagar and Lalitadri Nagar. Therefore, people who want sites at R.T.Nagar will have to apply for both places with separate ÿinitial deposits. So MUDA gets double the deposit it would otherwise have gotten. This appears to be an unfair trade practice.

    In its "clarification", MUDA says "...the applicants who have made the maximum number of attempts, have voluntarily applied separately for R.T.Nagar and Lalithadrinagar Layouts and remitted the appropriate EMD."

    When Item 17 of the rules and regulations states that allotment at R.T.Nagar will be considered for only those who have applied for both R.T.Nagar and Lalithadri Nagar, applicants for R.T. Nagar have to compulosily apply for both R.T. Nagar and Lalithadrinagar. Why is MUDA misleading the public saying that they are "voluntarily" applying separately?

4. An affidavit form has been given, but there are no instructions that it should be submitted on stamp paper (I was told orally that it should be on Rs. 20 stamp paper) and notarized. Omitting the stamp paper and not notarizing the affidavit may itself become a reason for rejection of application!

5. The affidavit asks the applicant to affirm "I and my family members are residing at the above address and it is a rented house and I am paying a monthly rent of Rs......" What if a person is not paying any rent but otherwise is eligible for allotment of site under MUDA?

6. It is required that the Domicile Certificate should be signed by an "Administrative officer with seal". Can any administrative officer of any organization sign it?  Getting it signed by any administrative officer may again itself become a reason for rejection of application!

 MUDA has not answered these last three points. As we have said in our original press release, MUDA being a statutory body, should be more responsible.

Its clarifications are seem to be as misleading as its original announcement for site applications! In addition, MUDA does not give details of what quality of infrastructure (roads, footpaths, storm water drains, electricity, water, UGD, etc.) it is providing. It is supposed to provide good quality infrastructure before selling the sites, but in many cases, it does not provide the infrastructure many years later, when it is ready to hand over the layout to MCC.

Prof. B.S. Shankara, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Monthly MGP Meeting

Mysore Grahakara Parishat will hold its monthly meeting on Sunday November 13 at 4.00 PM at 6/1 Vivekananda Road, Yadavagiri. With Mysore city drowning in garbage despite several initiatives of MCC, one of the topics to be discussed will be citizen's role in solving the garbage problem. It is always easy to criticize the officials and politicians for garbage problem. But there is equal responsibility on the part of the citizens also.

Karnataka Government has taken a new initiative to help the citizens by deciding to promulgate an ordinance to implement the Karnataka Guarantee of Services to Citizens Act, 2011. Under this act any officer who fails to render services within stipulated time will have to pay fine. On paper this sounds great as did several other acts like Consumer Protection Act, Right to Information Act, Right to Education Act etc. For consumers to get the best use of such acts, we need to be ever vigilant. During the meeting MGP plans to discuss how Mysoreans can prepare to get maximum benefits out of such an act.

For more information please call MGP at 2515150
Dr. Bhamy V. Shenoy

Autos taking Mysoreans for a ride

It was in 2008, SOM had published my detailed article titled Woes of Auto Consumers (see below). It had discussed both the problems faced by auto consumers as well as the terrible problems of auto drivers in earning enough to meet their daily requirements. It will not come as a surprise to any one if the concerned authorities or political leadership has failed to take steps to solve this consumer problem which has been affecting most Mysoreans.

At that time there were about 17000 registered autos in the city. In addition there were thousands of unregistered autos. During the last four years, number of autos serving Mysore must have gone up considerably. With that problems faced by auto consumers have also gone up. While prepaid taxi services at the bus stand and railway station has certainly helped the consumers, for others it is nightmare to ride auto.

As a regular user of autos, I have the first hand experience of getting cheated by them. Even for less than the minimum distance they demand Rs. 20 because petrol price has gone up. Actually most if not all autos run now on LPG whose price if any thing has remained more or less the same or has gone up only marginally. This is because the auto LPG price fluctuate with the international crude oil price whereas petrol price was liberalized since 18 months.

Many autos refuse to start the meter. The standard reply is that the meter is not working or it has just broken. If they happen to use the meter, more than likely it would have been deliberately set to jump.

Now that we have a campaign to fight corruption in our city, can we take steps to eliminate or at least reduce corruption in the auto rickshaw sector? Autos cheat the consumers because they are unable to earn enough. This is because there are a number of unregistered autos. Why cant the concerned authorities take steps to stop this menace? I have been told that when an unregistered auto is caught he pays a fine of Rs 100 which of course is passed on to consumers. We do not know how much mamul they have to pay in addition. When autos go for registration or meter calibration, no work will get done without paying a bribe. This again is collected finally from the consumers.

Unless we ensure that most auto drivers can earn enough for their living as suggested above, woes of auto consumers will only get worse.

Woes of Auto Consumers.
Bhamy V. Shenoy, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

In our city, it will be very difficult to find one auto whose meter is working properly. It is equally difficult to find any auto consumer who feels he or she has not been cheated excepting when prepaid autos are used at bus and railway stations. This is a statement based on my personal experience. I use auto often and have bitter experience of being cheated by most of them. However there are rare cases, they accept the right fare when I complain to them about faulty meter, show my knowledge of the actual distance traveled and my association with MGP.

I have a lot of sympathy for the auto drivers. I suspect many of them are not able to earn subsistence living even after putting many hours. They are forced by our cruel and corrupt system to pay bribe to authorities (mostly police according to them) despite their poor earnings. Some of them may even belong to below poverty level category. But this does not give them the right to cheat the consumers and also abuse us. Every day battles are fought with the auto drivers as customers alight at their destination in every part of the city. This is very unfortunate and should be avoided. Today auto travel has become a nightmare. As a result I have been now travelling by public transportation whenever it is possible.

To throw more light on this problem, I have attempted to compute the economics of auto drivers (see table). I had to make many educated estimates even after collecting information from a group of auto drivers. Still the results may fairly represent the economic problems faced by auto drivers.

My computations show that a typical auto driver making six daily trips of average 5 kilometers (total paid distance traveled of 30 Kms) using LPG at official price of Rs. 350 per 5.5 KG tank can earn Rs 1959 per month. His monthly income will fall to Rs. 1465 if he has to use petrol. This income though above the BPL, is not enough for a family of four. However if an auto driver makes trips for just 50 kilometers then his monthly income after all expenses will be Rs 5559 and Rs 4672 for LPG and petrol fueled vehicles respectively. With more than 15600 registered and several thousands unregistered autos in the city, not many drivers will be lucky to get enough trips to cover daily distance of 50 kms. Even at lower number of trips, amount of revenues generated in auto sector is more than Rs 28 laks per day.

A critical study of auto sector mirrors many corruption problems faced by our society. Since driving an auto does not require much skill, even unemployable college graduates are attracted towards this sector. It is easy to get bank financing for auto purchases. However when an auto driver finds that he is unable to make both ends meet, he starts to break the laws. He tampers with the meters to collect higher fare. He is unable to maintain his auto in good condition. Since he knows he is breaking the law or not in compliance with the vehicle rules, police and RTO are able to collect their mamuls from them.

Instead of using petrol, he uses subsidized kerosene to blend with petrol to operate his autos. He also has access to the so called MS petrol which is cheaper despite knowing it is illegal. The difference between auto LPG and residential LPG is so huge (Rs 31.82 versus 10.55 per liter) that many autos run on LPG allocated for residential use. This creates an LPG shortage for residential consumers. Auto sector is one where LPG dealers can make a killing by diverting their allotted residential LPG.

Mysore Grahakara Parishat has asked the metrology department in Deputy Commissioners office to do a random check of autos to detect meter tampering. Of course this is a hopeless task since most have tampered meters today. Still if auto drivers know that there will be an inspection and heavy penalty will be imposed if found guilty, things could improve.

Another alternative is for Police/RTO/DCs office to publish a booklet giving distances between important places. Third alternative is to force the autos to change over to digital meters with distances when time comes for replacement. All these strategies will be of little use, unless we as a society study the basic problem to help the auto drivers to earn enough money to make both ends meet. Now who should take this lead? Unfortunately officials in charge do not seem to have any concern about this issue. It is also equally the fault of consumers that we have failed to contact the officials with our grievances. Just increasing the fare will not solve the problem.

Bhamy V Shenoy, MGP

Photos from the October 2011 issue of Grahaka Patrike

(Vasanthkumar Mysoremath) 

A delegation of PhD students from Europe, Africa and Asia visited MGP office recently and discussed various social issues with MGP members

(D.V.Dayanand Sagar) 

Senior members of MGP, Dr. H.A.B. Parpia (3rd from left), H.R. Bapu Satyanarayana (4th from left) and Maj. Gen. (Rtd.) S.G. Vombatkere (1st from right) presented a memorandum to the Mayor of Mysore Smt. Pushpalatha Chikkanna to declare Mysore a GMO-free (GMO=Genetically Modified Organisms) city.

(B.V.Shenoy) 

The dais at the 22nd Annual General Body meeting of MGP held on 24-9-11 at The Paradise hotel in Yadavagiri.

(B.V.Shenoy) 

The audience at the 22nd Annual General Body meeting of MGP

(B.V.Shenoy)

Members enjoying refreshments after the 22nd Annual General Body meeting of MGP.

Poor planning by government causes suffering for the public

To renovate the old building occupied by the Mysore subregistars' offices, they were shifted in 2003 to a private building (Madhwesha Complex) on Male Mahadeshwara road. MGP strongly complained that the proposed building is unsuitable on several counts, one of which was that the office was on the second floor and access to the aged and the infirm was very difficult. The then Registrar Mr. M. Basavaraj and the Headquarters sub-registrar, Mr. H. Jaleel took these complaints seriously and removed most of the deficiencies within a year. A lift was provided and it proved a boon to the elderly. Separate toilets for ladies and gentlemen, drinking water, ample sitting accommodation for the public, spacious offices for the sud-registrars, ample parking for cars, etc. were provided.

Now the old building has been renovated, but as usual with government undertakings, the expansion was not well-planned and there is not enough space in the new building for both the subregistrars' offices. As a result, only the Mysore North subregistrar's office is being shifted back and Mysore South subregistrar's office will continue to operate from Madhwesha complex. The lift has broken down and due to discord between tenants and landlord, it has not been repaired. This makes access to the aged and the infirm very difficult. With no other option, MGP has now written to the Inspector General of Registration, Bangalore to intercede and rectify this problem.

A.M. Subba Rao, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

Why is MUDA promoting illegal GPA sale of sites?

MUDA is regularly placing advertisements in local newspapers announcing the sale of MUDA-allotted sites through General Power of Attorney. The advertisements state that if no objections are received within 15 days, MUDA will transfer the site to the buyer.  

But in a historic judgment (pdf) given on 11-10-2011, a three-man bench of the Supreme Court (Justices R.V. Raveendran, A.K. Patnaik and H.L. Gokhale) has outlawed GPA sale of sites allotted by Urban Development Authorities. As the Supreme Court observed in its judgment, the purpose of GPA Sales is to avoid stamp duty and  registration charges, avoid payment of capital gains, invest black money, avoid any public record of transactions, enable persons to hold any number of properties without disclosing them as assets held and avoid payment of 'unearned increases' due to Development Authorities on transfer. Persons who deal in real estate resort to these methods to increase their profit margin, the Supreme Court noted.  

As the Supreme Court observed, GPA sales adversely affect the economy, civil society and law and order. Firstly, it enables large scale evasion of income tax, wealth tax, stamp duty and registration fees thereby denying the benefit of such revenue to the government and the public. Secondly, such transactions enable persons to invest their black money profitably, thereby encouraging circulation of black money and corruption. The Court also noted many serious side-effects of GPA sales. When the market value increases, many vendors (who effected power of attorney sales without registration) are tempted to resell the property taking advantage of the fact that there is no registered instrument or record in any public office thereby cheating the purchaser. The purchaser then tries to take the help of musclemen to 'sort out' the issue and protect his rights. On the other hand, real estate mafia often purchase properties which are already subject to power of attorney sale and then threaten the previous 'Power of Attorney Sale' purchasers from asserting their rights. Either way, such power of attorney sales indirectly lead to growth of real estate mafia and criminalization of real estate transactions.  

"It also makes title verification and certification of title, which is an integral part of orderly conduct of transactions relating to immovable property, difficult, if not impossible, giving  nightmares to bonafide purchasers wanting to own a property with an assurance of good and marketable title", the Supreme Court said.  

After having made these blistering observations on the GPA sale of sites, the Supreme Court went on to say  "We therefore reiterate that immovable property can be legally and lawfully transferred/conveyed only by a registered deed of conveyance. Transactions of the nature of 'GPA sales' or 'Sale Agreement/GPA/Will transfers' do not convey title and do not amount to transfer, nor can they be recognized or valid mode of transfer of immoveable property."  

Even before the Supreme Court decision, MUDA must have realized the illegal and criminal motives (listed above) behind GPA sales and must have prohibited them. But it did not do so. What is shocking is that even after explicit outlawing of GPA sales by the Supreme Court, MUDA is still publishing advertisements and promoting GPA sale of its sites.

P.M. Bhat, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Some Useful Information on LPG Cylinders

Have you noticed the numbers painted on the inside of one of the three steel plates which connect an LPG cylinder to its handle ring? Have you wondered what they mean? 

According to the Indian Oil Corporation website, all LPG cylinders have to be periodically tested to make sure that they are working properly. New cylinders are tested at the factory to make sure that they meet the standards specified in the Gas Cylinder Rules, 2004 and are released to the market. They are tested again after 10 years and every 5 years after this test. Cylinders which fail the test are withdrawn and destroyed. But when they pass such a test the date of the next test is painted on the inside of one of the three steel plates which connect an LPG cylinder to its handle ring. The date is represented by an alphabet and two numerals. The numerals refer to the year and the alphabets stand for January-March(A), April-June (B), July-September (C) and October-December (D). The code B12 shown in the photo means that the cylinder should be tested before June 2012.

 The empty weight of the cylinder is also painted next to the date of the next test. It is 15.9 kg for the cylinder in the photo. Since the weight of domestic gas is 14.2 kg, this cylinder when it is delivered to a customer should weigh 30.1 kg. By weighing a new cylinder, a customer can make sure that he is not getting short-changed on the weight.

 Supply of a cylinder past the period marked on it is a violation of Sec. 26 of the  Gas Cylinder Rules, 2004. It should be reported to the Food & Civil Supplies Department (located in Deputy Commissioner's Office building) or to S. Krishna on 99459-02135 (call or SMS). 

 A frequently heard complaint is that water is being filled in LPG cylinders, thus cheating the consumers. We thought it was just a rumour, but then we came across a scientific study which appeared in the July 2006 issue of "Forensic Chemist" journal. This paper written by Mr. K.M. Varshney, Assistant Director of the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Hyderabad, has found that in some cases, as much as 36% of the gas in the cylinder had been replaced by water. You can check whether there is water in your cylinder by weighing it when empty. If this weight is more than the weight painted on the cylinder, then the cylinder has water in it.

Asha Vombatkere, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

For How Long Should You Preserve Old Electricity Receipts?

Many people are not clear about how long they should keep their electricity receipts. Many are worried that the electricity supply companies might bill them under "audit short claim" about power consumed several years earlier. A brief history of the legal position on this issue is given here.

In a decision given in 1993 (III (1993) CPJ 381 (NC)), the National Consumer Commission held that limitation period applies to electricity bills and that the electricity supply company can not raise a bill for power consumed more than three years ago. So consumers do not have to pay audit short claims more than three years old and need not preserve bill payment receipts for more than three years. The Supreme Court, in a judgment given in 1997 (AIR 1997 SC 1101) agreed that the supply companies can not make new demands on power consumed more than three years ago, but it also said that electric companies can disconnect the supply for not clearing the arrears. As a result of this surprising (and apparently self-contradicting) judgment, electricity consumers had to preserve all their old receipts, because if the electricity company claimed that you had not paid a bill 10 years ago, it could disconnect your supply unless you could prove that you had actually paid it.

But the law governing electricity supply was changed in 2003 when the Electricity Act, 2003 came into effect. According to Sec 56(2) of the Act, "no sum due from any consumer, ... shall be recoverable after the period of two years from the date when such sum became first due unless such sum has been shown continuously as recoverable as arrears of charges for electricity supplied and the licensee shall not cut off the supply of the electricity."

Therefore, if your electricity bills are not showing any outstanding arrears, you need to keep the receipts only for a period of two years. The electricity supply company can not claim that you owe money on a bill more than two two years ago and punish you for the non-payment.

Dr.T.N. Manjunath, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Deceptive MUDA Announcement

Recently MUDA (Mysore Urban Development Authority) called for applications from the public for allotment of sites in Lalitadri Nagar, R.T. Nagar and Chamalapura. The MUDA announcement is deceptive (whether unintentional or not) on several accounts.Notification link (pdf)

1. The announcement does not commit to any specific dates for allotment of sites or for refund of the initial deposit to non-allottees. Since it states that the initial deposit will not earn any interest, it is easy to infer the intentions of MUDA. Huge sums of public money will earn interest to MUDA at the expense of the public.  

2. The guideline paper issued along with the application form does not show any map of the place and the extent of the readiness of the sites, roads,ÿelectricity, water and UGD lines, etc. So the public have no way of knowing when the sites will be ready.   

3. Item 17 of the rules and regulations states that allotment at R.T.Nagar will be considered for only those who have applied for both R.T.Nagar and Lalitadri Nagar. Therefore, people who want sites at R.T.Nagar will have to apply for both places with separate initial deposits. So MUDA gets double the deposit it would otherwise have gotten. This appears to be an unfair trade practice.  

4. An affidavit form has been given, but there are no instructions that it should be submitted on stamp paper (I was told orally that it should be on Rs. 20 stamp paper) and notarized. Omitting the stamp paper and not notarizing the affidavit may itself become a reason for rejection of application!  

5. The affidavit asks the applicant to affirm "I and my family members are residing at the above address and it is a rented house and I am paying a monthly rent of Rs......" What if a person is not paying any rent but otherwise is eligible for allotment of site under MUDA?  

6. It is required that the Domicile Certificate should be signed by an "Administrative officer with seal". Can any administrative officer of any organization sign it?  Getting it signed by any administrative officer may again itself become a reason for rejection of application! 

How can MUDA be so reckless in distributing sites? Statutory bodies such as MUDA need to be more responsible.

Prof. B.S. Shankara, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

Statins are not Very Cost Effective

The article on statins in the Health and Medicine column of Star Of Mysore (12-10-11) appears to paint a much rosier picture of statins than is warranted by published evidence. The article admits that there is questionable cost effectiveness when statins are used for primary prevention, but goes on to say that statins are effective in decreasing mortality in people with pre-existing cardiovascular disease since statins can cause upto 60% decrease in the number of cardiac events.

The clinical trial (Jupiter trial) which shows these results was a study of 18,000 people. The trial looked only at people who had low cholesterol and an elevated level of inflammation (as measured by CRP) and it looked only at the statin Crestor. The rate of heart attacks was 0.37% among patients who took a placebo and 0.17% among patients who took Crestor. So the study concluded that Crestor reduced heart attacks by 55%.

But a more careful analysis presented in the 31-3-10 issue of the prestigious daily New York Times shows that the benefit of Crestor is much less than it seems. The difference between the two groups translates to only 0.2 percentage points in absolute terms or 2 people out of 1,000. As N.Y. Times puts it, Stated another way, 500 people would need to be treated with Crestor for a year to avoid one usually survivableAt $3.50 a pill, the cost of prescribing Crestor to 500 people for a year would be $638,000 to prevent one heart attack. Spending Rs. 2.5 crores to prevent one usually survivable heart attack does not appear to be cost effective.

Recent studies have also found that use of statin may cause diabetes. A study published in the 27-2-2010 issue of the noted medical journal Lancet shows a 9% increased risk of diabetes for statin users.

C.V. Nagaraj, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Organic Farming Superior to Chemical Farming - New Study

It is an accepted fact that, from the pollution point of view, organic farming is superior to chemical farming. But a recent study has found that organic farming is superior even from the viewpoints of economic viability and energy usage as well as other environmental points of view such as emission of greenhouse gases and ground water recharging. These findings are highly significant in light of the frequently repeated statements that organic farming is more expensive and that mankind can not be fed if all farmers adopted organic agriculture. The makers of agricultural policy in India have promoted this dogma for so long that the vast majority of Indian farmers seem to believe it. As a result, they have been caught in the vortex of increasing cost of fertilizers, pesticides, power and water and unable to come out, they are resorting in ever increasing numbers to bankruptcy and suicide. It is welcome that this study conducted by a renowned institution has proven that organic farming is more beneficial not just ecologically, but also economically. 

Started in 1981, the Farming Systems Trial at Rodale Institute (Pennsylvania, USA) is one of the world's longest running, side-by-side comparison of organic and chemical agriculture (A study to compare ordinary crops and GM crops is going on for the last three years, but it is too early to come to any definite conclusions). It compares soybean and maize crops grown under three systems, organic manure, organic legume rotation and chemical. The major findings of the report on the completion of 30 years of trial are: 

1.Soil health in the organic systems has increased over time while the chemical systems remain essentially unchanged. One measure of soil health is the amount of carbon contained in the soil. Carbon performs many crucial functions such as acting as a reservoir of plant nutrients, binding soil particles together, providing food source for beneficial microbes, binding heavy metals and pesticides, etc. Carbon increase was highest in the organic manure system, followed by the organic legume system. Instead of an increase, the chemical system has shown a loss in carbon in recent years. The organic fields also increased groundwater recharge and reduced runoff. 

2. Over the thirty years of trials, the yields were the same in organic and chemical systems. 

3. The organic systems used 45% less energy than the chemical systems. 

4. Since the expenses are lower in the organic systems, the profits are higher. If one includes the prmium prices commanded by organic foods, the profits in organic systems were three times the profits in the chemical systems. 

5. Crops grown in the organic systems emit only 70% of the greenhouse gases emitted by crops grown under the chemical systems. 

6. Organically grown crops do not contain dangerous pesticide residues and so are better for human health. 

Though the Rodale study reports that organic farming produces the same yields as does chemical farming, studies by the noted Japanese expert, Masanobu Fukuoka have shown that in natural farming (an extreme form of organic farming in which the plants after reaping are allowed to decay to provide manure for the next crop and there is very little application of external organic manure) the soil steadily improves over time in organic matter, moisture, microbial activity and other soil quality indicators and as a result, the yield keeps increasing. This is in contrast to conventional chemical farming in which the yield increases the first few years and then begins to decrease. 

So chemical (or "modern") farming is ecologically more damaging, economically more expensive and produces less nutritious (and in the opinion of many, less tasty) food than organic (or "traditional") farming. It is tragic that Indian farmers have been forced to change from the much superior traditional farming to modern farming. Eighteenth century British records show that between 1762 and 1766 there were villages in Chingleput district in Tamilnadu which produced up to 12 tons of paddy a hectare in a year (www.cpsindia.org). In comparson, the best modern US production is nine tons per hectare in a year. It was this superiority of traditional agriculture in India that inspired the founder of modern organic farming, Sir Albert Howard. It is hoped that the Rodale study will open the eyes of the agricultural authorities in India and make them refocus on traditional organic farming.

Maj.Gen. (Rtd.) S.G. Vombatkere, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

Non-lawyers Can Appear In Consumer Courts

In an important recent decision (III (2011) CPJ 33 (SC)), the Supreme Court has upheld the right of non-lawyers to appear before consumer courts.

Bar Council of India, which was one of the parties had contended that according to Sec. 33 of the the Advocates Act (which reads: Advocates alone entitled to practise.-Except as otherwise provided in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force, no person shall, on or after the appointed day, be entitled to practise in any court or before any authority or person unless he is enrolled as an advocate under this Act.), only advocates can plead and argue before the consumer courts. Therefore, it prayed for barring non-advocates from representing parties before consumer courts.

But the Supreme Court did not agree with this argument. It said that Consumer Protection Rules made under the Act speak of "the complainant or his authorized agent" and therefore give the complainant has the option of appearing personally before the consumer court or have his authorized agent appear for him. The same thing holds for the defendant also. The Court pointed out that engagement of advocates, especially when the claim is for a small amount may not be economically viable. Also, if the claim involves deficiency in service, a professional like a doctor, architect or an engineer may be more suitable to present the case than an advocate. Such an interpretation of the law is not only literally correct, but also promotes the declared objectives of the law. It helps the claimant and the defendant equally and it does not violate any provision of the Advocates Act, the Court noted.

The Court also noted that non-advocates are permitted to appear in various forums such as the Income Tax Tribunal, Sales Tax Tribunal and the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission. It is the legislative intention that non-advocates appear before many judicial and quasi-judicial bodies, it said.

For these reasons, the Supreme Court ruled that authorized agents who are not professional advocates can appear for the parties before consumer courts. To prevent non-advocates making a profession out of appearing as authorized agents, the Supreme Court directed the National Consumer Commission to frame detailed rules regarding appearance of agents. It suggested creating an accreditation process for agents who wish to collect fee and a bar on collecting fees by non-accredited agents.

G.L.Nagaraj Urs, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

MCC Clarifies On SAS Property Tax

Mysore City Corporation has again clarified about SAS property tax. Since the circular issued to its staff is self-explanatory, its translation is reproduced below in full. 

No.HAPR/78/2011-12 

Dated 6-9-2011 

Reminder 

Sub: SAS property tax declaration 

Ref: Reminder sent from this office with the same number and dated 26-7-2011

The returns and the tax submitted by the property tax payers under the Self Assessed Property Tax scheme to zonal offices have to be inspected and received by the concerned officials and the self assessed tax of the property owners should not be rejected. You were directed by the reference letter that if there are differences in the self assessed tax declaration, the revenue inspectors must give a notice and obtain the difference according to the rules.

But, a complaint has been lodged by Mysore Grahakara Parishat that harassment of the tax payers by the revenue inspectors has again started in the zonal offices, the instructions of the reference letter are not being followed, and saying that they have instructions from the MCC Commissioner to accept only taxes which follow their calculations, SAS taxes are not being accepted in some zonal offices.

Therefore, we are once again informing you that as indicated in the reference letter, if the public calculate their tax, fill out the SAS form and come to pay the tax, such tax returns should be accepted and the payment should be received. Afterwards, if on inspection, it is found that there is a difference, steps should be taken to obtain the difference.

Assistant Commissioners/Assistant Revenue Officers and revenue inspectors are instructed to follow the above directions. Such complaints should not come again. If such complaints are received again, you are warned that suitable action will be taken on the concerned officials.

Sd/-
Revenue Officer
Mysore City Corporation

It is welcome that MCC Commissioner and Revenue Officer have given such a clarification to prevent harassment of the tax payers. They are to be congratulated. Below are the scanned copies of the above letter and the reference quoted in it. The public can make use of them.

(Click on the images for better clarity)

Dr.T.N.Manjunath, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Check Computer Generated Receipts

Sir, Recently I went to a supermarket in Mysore and purchased a few things. After coming home, I took a look at the receipt and saw the word "Jaggery" on it. Since I had not purchased any jaggery, I started wondering how it got printed on the receipt. I checked all the things listed on the receipt with the things I had actually bought and I found out that a packet of dried peas which I had bought was not listed on the receipt. On closer scrutiny, I found that the number printed under the bar code on the pea packet was 9031223 while the number against the entry "Jaggery" on the receipt was 9031233 (one digit difference). The price of the pea packet was Rs. 18 while I had been charged Rs. 46 for the jaggery I had not bought.

When I went to the store to get the refund of Rs. 28, I was told that even if the bar code on the packet is slightly damaged, the bar code scanner can not read it. This happens quite often. Then, the person at the counter has to punch in the number (beneath the bar code) manually for the computer which generates the receipt. Naturally, mistakes happen in the punching and the item bought does not get billed. Instead the customer is billed for an item he did not purchase.

Many people are under the impression that since the receipt is generated by a computer, it is always correct. But this impression is wrong. Consumers should check the receipt to make sure that they are not wrongly billed.

B.Vaikunth Shenoy, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Electricity Rate Hike: Objections, CESC Replies & Rebuttals

Chamundeshwari Electric Supply Corporation (CESC) has proposed a rate hike for 2012 before the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission. It has submitted its reply to MGP's objections to the rate hike. KERC is holding a public hearing at 11 AM on 14-9-11 at the DC's Office in Mysore about the CESC application. MGP will be submitting its rebuttal of CESC replies at the hearing. MGP's objections, CESC replies and MGP's rebuttal of these replies are given below.

Objection No.1: KERC approved the present tariff as a multi-year tariff for the years 2011-13. Sec. 61(f) of the Electricity Act, 2003 (EA) mandates multi-year tariffs. There are two reasons for fixing multi-year tariff rather than annual tariff, i) to encourage efficiency of supply companies and ii) to reduce regulatory uncertainty. Fixing the tariff once again when there are two years left on the original period of the multi-year tariff defeats the whole purpose of multi-year tariff and violates the EA. It should not be done. 

CESC Reply: The present application is supplemental to the MYT order for 2011-13. TheMYT process is continuous and not one time application. There are certain deferred claims on the above MYT order which has to be claimed in the subsequent APR applications. So the present application is in order and there is no violation of the EA.

Rebuttal: The MYT process is not meant to be continuous. The ESCOMs are supposed to make accurate projections and come before the KERC only once in every 3-4 years. If they can not make accurate projections, hence suffer a loss and ask for tariff revisions every year, there is no point to the MYT system. The lawmakers realized that the ESCOMs should be made efficient and accountable and that is why they have legislated MYT. Unfortunately, the spirit of the law is being violated in Karnataka, since we have filed objections to electricity rate increases before KERC almost every year from 2006 (on 31-7-06, 21-7-07, 9-9-09, 25-11-10 and 25-8-11). This is a travesty of the concept of multi-year tariffs.

Objection 2: Sec.61(g) of EA intends that the tariff should reflect the actual cost of power. Since all the power supply companies in Karnataka have filed for identical tariff increases, it is obvious that the tariff proposed by them in general, and CESC in particular, does not reflect the actual cost of power. The present rates and the proposed rates are identical for all the ESCOMs. The actual cost of supply of power for all these companies can not be the same to the last decimal place when one takes into account, the different locations, different distances to power sources, different demographics and different costs of living. It is clear that the ESCOMs have not determined the cost of power supply in any scientific manner, but are presenting fictitious numbers. 

CESC Reply: CESC is filing the present application based on actual accounts. 

Rebuttal: Not only should the application be based on actual accounts, the tariff asked should also be based on the actual accounts. The different ESCOMs must have different Operations and Maintenance costs and different income-expenditure gaps. How then can they all ask for the same tariff hike? The fact that all ESCOMs have always asked for the same tariffs shows that they are acting as a cartel and are trying to illegally fix the price of electricity in Karnataka. 

Objection 3: Sec.5.9.4 of the National Electricity Policy states that a more regulatory approach of setting standards for energy conservation would be followed. The most obvious regulation to promote energy conservation is to have higher tariffs for higher consumption. Increasing the tariff by the same amount irrespective of consumption goes in the opposite direction. 

Rebuttal: Higher tariff for higher consumption is true in the current proposal, but the tariffs for high and low consumption have come closer because of the common increase. If the tariff continues to be increased by the same amount for all consumers, the gap between the rate paid by energy savers and the rate paid by energy guzzlers will become even less. To see this clearly, let us look at the present rates. The highest rate of Rs. 5 per unit is 238% of the lowest rate of Rs. 2.10 per unit. If the cost per unit is increased by 10 Rs. for all consumers, the lowest tariff would then be 12.10 per unit while the highest would be only Rs. 15.00. So the highest rate will be just 124% higher than the lowest rate. When the gap between the two tariffs keeps going down, there will not be enough incentive to economize and there will not be enough deterrent to wasteful spending. This is a violation of Sec. 5.9.4 of the National Electricity Policy. To be consistent with the NEP, the rate at which the higher slab tariff increases should be much higher than the rate at which the lower slab tariff increases. In the table above, if the lowest rate Rs. 2.10 is increased to Rs. 2.98, the highest rate Rs. 5 should be increased to at least Rs. 7.10. 

Objection 4: Rural areas are suffering heavy power cuts in contrast to urban areas. This discrimination by CESC is against both equity and Sec. 5.1 of the National Electricity Policy. Electricity Regulatory Commissions of other states have acted to stop such discrimination. Karnataka Human Rights Commission has written to the state government on this issue. The Commission is urged to order an end to such discrimination. 

CESC Reply: CESC is arranging 12 hours of single phase supply to rural areas. The power supply schedule is subject to variation depending on availability. CESC is not discriminating among consumers in arranging power supply. 

Rebuttal: CESC may be arranging for 12 hour supply in rural areas. Is it not giving much longer continuous supply to cities? Is this not discrimination?

V.Mahesha, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

Restriction Removed On Right To Information Queries

In a recent and significant decision, the Central Information Commission has said that Right to Information queries need not be on a single subject.

In earlier judgments, Chief Information Commissioners Wajahat Habibullah and A.N.Tiwari had ruled that an RTI application should be limited to a single subject matter. If the applicant seeks information on more than one subject matter, he has to file a applications and pay Rs. 10 for each subject matter.

But in the latest order (given by Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi on 28-8-11), the CIC has reversed itself. Referring to the earlier decisions, it observes 

"What constitutes a 'single subject matter' has neither been defined in the RTI Act, the rules and regulations framed thereunder and not even by the then Chief Information Commissioners... No parameters have been laid down...by which an applicant and the Public Information Officer can determine whether the information sought pertains to one subject matter. In the absence of any means to determine what tantamounts to 'one subject matter', the PIO can, at his discretion, furnish part information claiming that the remaining information sought in the RTI application pertains to a different subject matter for which a separate RTI application is required to be filed...The exercise of such discretion by the PIO is likely to be subjective resulting in arbitrary curtailment of the fundamental right to information of citizens and unnecessary expenditure of money. In the absence of any clear definition of what 'one category of request' means it would only lead to arbitrary refusals of information under the RTI Act, leading to clogging of the appellate mechanisms." 

Sec. 14 of the Karnataka Right to Information Rules made under the RTI Act says that a request should relate to one subject matter. If an applicant seeks information on more than one subject matter, he should make separate applications. So the limit to one subject matter has been made a part of the law itself in Karnataka (The legality of making such a rule is itself questionable. The function of rules is to support and implement the law under which they are made. But rules can not impose conditions which are absent in the law. So the above Karnataka rule could be itself illegal). 

Despite the fact that the limit to one subject matter has been made a part of the law in Karnataka, the logic of the latest CIC judgment is still applicable. KRI Rules also do not define what constitutes a single subject matter nor do they lay down parameters by which an applicant and the PIO can determine whether the information sought pertains to one subject matter or more than one. So Sec. 14 of the KRI Rules which limits RTI requests to one subject matter can not be enforced according to the latest CIC decision. 

But there are no clear rules of precedence in the Right to Information framework. So the State Information Commission need not follow the judgments of the Central Information Commission and an Information Commission is not even bound by its own earlier decisions. As a result, the next time an Information Commission faces the single subject problem, it can rule in any way.

Maj.Gen. (Rtd.) S.G. Vombatkere, Mysore Grahakara Parishat 

Dangerous Road Hump On KRS Road

KRS Road which was closed for more than a year has been finally reopened for traffic after major upgradation. An unwelcome feature of the upgraded road is the road hump between the Railway Museum and the LIC building.

This has already caused several accidents especially at night, since there are no street lights.

The Indian Roads Congress (IRC), a consultative body consisting of the top experts on the subject has published the definitive guidelines (IRC: 99-1988) on the construction of road humps. These guidelines say that road humps are meant mainly for residential areas and minor roads. Their use on major roads is not considered good engineering practice and IRC explicitly discourages it. So one probably should not have a road hump on KRS Road. 

According to the guidelines, a driver should not lose directional control when crossing the hump. But auto drivers tell us that several two-wheeler drivers are losing control over this hump. The reason seems clear. The guidelines suggest a design with a height of 4 inches and a width of 12 feet for controlling the speed of two-wheelers and cars to 25 kmph. This can be used on roads on which heavy traffic is very rare. If there are many busses/lorries plying such roads, they will feel a fairly severe jolt at 25 kmph and so the vehicles will cross the hump at lower speeds forcing the following traffic to speeds much less than the safe speed. For roads on which lorries and busses are the dominant traffic, the width of the hump must be increased to 16 feet to limit the speed of such traffic to 25 kmph. 

It is seen from the photo that the hump on KRS road is about 6 inches high and only 5 feet wide. It is no wonder two-wheeler drivers lose control over the vehicles when crossing it. Busses and lorries almost come to a stop while crossing it, causing more accidents. 

It is not clear who is in charge of laying road humps in Mysore, the Corporation or the police. Whoever it is, it is clear that the IRC Guidelines are not being followed. It is doubtful if any of the road humps in Mysore meet the above specifications. Badly designed road humps instead of reducing accidents, worsen the problem. 

D.V. Dayanand Sagar, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Badly Designed Bus Stops

Several High Tech bus stops have been built at enormous expense all around the city under JNNURM grants. But they are not well-designed or well-maintained. Here are two examples.

In the bus stop next to Lakshmi Theatre, the seats are too high. Since the seats have no backs, it is easy to lose balance and topple over. There is a deep gutter just behind the bus stop and there is no no protective barrier.

People in general and children in particular can slip and fall into the drain. It is not clear why a protective barrier has not been installed. In the bus stop near Nirmala Convent in Gokulam, there are no seats for the last several months. It is possible that they were stolen after installation, but no one has bothered to replace them.

Without seats, the bus stop is almost useless and people are using the old bus stop. 

D.V. Dayanand Sagar, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Ward Committees Again?!

It was reported in the media recently that MCC Wards Parliamentary Federation has invited interested persons to apply to become members of Citizens' Committees.

I had become a member of such a committee for my ward last year. But meetings were not held regularly and nothing came out of the meetings that were held. We were told that we can get improvement projects executed and if we raised 10% of the cost, the other 90% would be borne by MCC. We raised a significant amount of money based on this assurance, but the remaining 90% never materialized and the projects never got off the ground.

I am surprised that applications are again being sought for the ward committees. What happened to the old committees? What is the purpose of these committees? If the old committees are being scrapped and new committees formed, will the new committees also not become fruitless soon?

D.V. Dayanand Sagar, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Immediate Action from MCC Needed

The water distribution system of Mysore is being revamped under JNNURM project. Under the tripartite agreement signed by Mysore City Corporation, Karnataka Water Supply and Drainage Board and Jamshedpur Utilities and Services Company, JUSCO is laying new water lines to every consumer in Mysore.

But the new pipes are being installed only for a distance of one meter inside one's property. It is the reponsibility of the owner of the property to lay the pipes from there to the water meter. It is very difficult to get labour for such a small job. Even if labour can be found, the payment demanded is huge. From the complaints we have received from J.P.Nagar, workers are demanding as much as Rs. 1000-1500. Many desperate home owners are paying this huge amount. As the work progresses, the nearly 2 lakh domestic and commercial establishments in Mysore will face the same problem.

 If JUSCO itself does this work, not only will it be faster, the property owners will also be spared effort and expense. MGP has spoken to both JUSCO and KUWS&DB. JUSCO is ready to do the job only if KUWS&DB which is the paying authority issues instructions. KUWS&DB will issue instructions only if MCC passes a resolution to this effect and gets it approved by the state government. Therefore the proposal of having JUSCO do the entire job, one that may benefit lakhs of property owners in Mysore, hinges on MCC' resolution.

Therefore we request MCC to pass a resolution on the matter and ask KUWS&DB to issue suitable instructions to JUSCO. Let JUSCO publish its rate for laying one foot of pipe. If people find it acceptable, they will get the work done by JUSCO. On the other hand, if they think it is too much, they can get the work done by others.

  

V.Mahesha, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Fast Courts To Be Set Up To Try Food Adulteration Cases

Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA) which was passed by the parliament in 2006 itself has finally come into force three months after the gazette notification of the Food Safety and Standards Rules on 5-5-11. FSSA which replaces eight earlier laws (including the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act - PFAA - and orders referring to food passed under the Essential Commodities Act) is in effect all over the country from 5-8-2011. FSSA will govern any establishment connected with food, including shops, roadside eateries and hotels and also advertisements related to food.

 The main features of the FSSA are as follows:

1. A committee of 22 members called the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has been set up to specify standards with respect to food items and to set maximum pemissible limits for the use of food additives, pesticide residues, heavy metals, etc. in food items. As of now, the standards and limits set by the PFAA hold.

2. A Commissioner of Food Safety has been appointed in every state with the responsibility of effectively implementing the Act. This is a full-time job. S.Selvakumar, who served as MCC Commissioner in 2002-3 has been appointed the Commissioner of Food Safety for Karnataka.

3. A Designated Officer (DO) has been appointed in every district to enforce the act. Dr. D.G.Nagaraj, the surveillance Officer in the District Health Office is the DO for Mysore district. The DO is in charge if issuing (and cancelling) licences to all establishments connected with food (This duty is now being handled by MCC). His responsibilities also include getting food samples tested to see if they meet standards and filing cases under FSSA against persons who sell substandard or adulterated food items.

4. Food Safety Officers (FSO) have been appointed in every Taluk. The FSOs have the responsibility of collecting food samples from various establishments. They can also close down and seal an establishment under certain circumstances. A liability clause has been written into the law and any FSO who exercises his powers in bad faith can be punished with a fine of upto one lakh rupees. H.J.Suryanarayana is the FSO for Mysore city and P.T. Mahadeva is the FSO for Mysore rural.

5. The public can not file a case under FSSA against an adulterator. They have to get the FSO take the sample and then get it tested through the DO. Only a DO or the Commissioner of Food Safety can file a case under FSSA.

6. Cases under the FSSA can not be filed in ordinary courts. To try such cases, an officer not below the rank of Additional District Magistrate has been appointed in all districts as an Adjudicating Officer. He has all the powers of a civil court.

7. An appeal against an order of the Adjudicating Officer lies with the Food Safety Appellate Tribunal. Such tribunals have been established in all states.

8. The Adjudicating Officer and the Tribunal can try cases in summary fashion, i.e., speedily and without the complicated procedures of the Civil Procedure Code. They are similar to consumer courts in this respect.

9. No civil court can take any case over which the Adjudicating Officer or the Tribunal has jurisdiction. An appeal against the order of the Tribunal lies only with the High Court.

10. Penalties for food adulteration have been enhanced compared to the PFAA. PFAA speaks of fines in the thousands while FSSA talks only of lakhs of rupees. If violation of the law results in death, FSSA prescribes a minimum imprisonment of  7 years (extending to life imprisonment).

Some negative aspects of the new law:

11. In the versions of PFAA before 1991, there was an upper limit to insect parts, rodent hair or excreta that could be present in grains, but this restriction has been omitted from later editions of the PFAA. FSSA also omits such restrictions. The reason for this omission is not clear. In the FSSA, the only reference to the presence of insects in grains is Sec. 3(zz)(ix) which says that a food is "unsafe" if the presence of insects in it is injurious to health. Since eating rice weevils is probably not injurious to health, one can sell rice infested with weevils without attracting punishment under FSSA. This is strange.

12. The law seems carelessly drafted in a few places. For example, a purchaser can take food samples from a vendor and have them analyzed. If the food is adulterated, the purchaser is supposed to get the cost of analysis refunded. But it is not clear who will refund the fee, the food analyst, the vendor or the government. It is also not clear who will issue the order of the refund.  Another example of careless drafting of the law is the following. The Adjudicating Officer is required to pass the final order within 90 days from the date of the first hearing of any case, but the law has forgotten to include a time limit for the Tribunal.

C.V. Nagaraj, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

MGP Objections To Electricity Tariff Hike Proposal

Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation (CESC), which supplies electric power to Mysore has filed an application before the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) to increase electricity tariffs for 2012. CESC has called for objections to the rate increase. Mysore Grahakara Parishat is filing the following objections:

1. KERC approved the present tariff in 2010 as a multi-year tariff for the years 2011-13. Sec. 61(f) of the Electricity Act, 2003 (EA) mandates multi-year tariffs. There are two reasons for fixing multi-year tariff rather than annual tariff, to encourage efficiency of supply companies and to reduce regulatory uncertainty. Fixing the tariff once again when there are two years left on the original period of the multi-year tariff defeats the whole purpose of multi-year tariff and violates the Electricity Act.

2. Sec. 61(g) of EA intends that the tariff should reflect the actual cost of power. Since all the electricity supply companies (ESCOMs) in Karnataka have filed for identical tariff increases, it is obvious that the tariff proposed by them in general, and CESC in particular, does not reflect the actual cost of power. For example, the proposed tariffs (energy charges) for LT 2(a)(i) category (domestic AEH) is as follows:      

                     Present rate          Proposed rate     % increase
           
For the first
30 units                 2.1                    2.98                   42
           
31 to 100 units       3.2                    4.08                   28
           
101 to 200 units      4.2                    5.08                   21
           
 > 200 units            5                      5.88                   18

These figures are identical for all the five ESCOMs in Karnataka. Last year also, the five ESCOMs had applied for identical tariff increases. The actual cost of supply of power for all these companies can not be the same to the last decimal place when one takes into account, the different locations, different distances to power sources, different demographics and different costs of living. It is clear that the ESCOMs have not determined the cost of power supply in any scientific manner, but are presenting fictitious numbers. For this reason, the tariff hike proposed by CESC should be rejected. The ESCOMs have been always submitting identical tariffs and MGP has requested KERC to direct them to cease this practice and determine the actual cost of power supplied.

3. Sec. 5.9.4. of the National Electricity Policy emphasizes a more regulatory approach to setting standards for energy conservation. The most obvious regulation to promote energy conservation is to have higher tariffs for higher consumption. Increasing the tariff by the same amount irrespective of consumption goes in the opposite direction. In the table above (Item 2), the tariff has been increased by 0.88 Rs. for all consumers. This works out to 42% increase for consumers who practice energy conservation and just 18% increase for consumers who waste energy. Such a rate increase defeats the aim of the National Electricity Policy. Since Sec. 61(i) of the EA mandates that the National Electricity Policy must be followed in fixing tariffs, the rate increase also violates the law. Rightly, it should have been the other way round, 18% increase for the lowest slab and 42% increase for the highest slab.

4. Rural areas are suffering heavy power cuts in contrast to urban areas. This discrimination by CESC is against both equity and Sec. 5.1 of the National Electricity Policy. Electricity Regulatory Commissions of other states have acted to stop such discrimination. For example, in an order given on 5-5-2006, the Punjab ERC has ruled "The Commission further decides that the (Punjab State Electricity) Board should take adequate steps to minimize discrimination amongst consumers of different categories especially rural and urban domestic consumers as far as possible while imposing power cuts." In another order issued on 18-5-2007, PERC said "The Commission notes that there is disparity in the imposition of power cuts especially in the case of some urban centres and in rest of the State. The Commission observes that this clear discrimination between two sets of the same consumers seems to be iniquitous and without any rational basis. It would, perhaps, be best if power cuts are applied evenly in urban and rural areas of the State. If on the other hand the Board is still of the view that there are overriding compulsions to the contrary then it may draw up fair and transparent criteria that might justify any disparity in the imposition of power cuts." In a 2009 concept paper on power cuts (pdf) the Uttarakhand Electricity Regulatory Commission has observed "If all such feeders are not required to be cut, requisite number of feeders only may be cut but on rotational basis so that all consumers bear the brunt of such power cuts" and then again "The practice of exempting some cities for their perceived importance should be stopped and all urban areas should be treated similarly." These are some persuasive precedents. Karnataka Human Rights Commission has written to the state government on this issue. KERC should order an end to such discrimination.

Maj.Gen. (Rtd.) S.G. Vombatkere, Mysore Grahakara Parishat