Aurangabad, March 12:
The Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) today has deposited an instalment of Rs 5 crore to the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) against the power consumed through streetlights in the city.
The AMC has also assured of paying the remaining dues of Rs 6.98 crore by March-end, it is learnt. Earlier, the divisional commissioner Sunil Kendrekar has ordered the AMC to clear the outstanding bills on priority.
The deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar was in the city during the last month. He had instructed the divisional commissioner to direct all the municipal corporations, municipal councils, and gram panchayats to pay their power dues during the meeting. Accordingly, Kendrekar held a meeting with the AMC administrator A K Pandey and the joint managing director (MSEDCL), Dr Naresh Gite, in this regard. Taking cue of the meeting, Gite held two joint meetings were held between AMC and MSEDCL officials.
The AMC administrator A K Pandey and other officers like chief accounts officer Sanjay Pawar, head of the electrical section Avinash Deshmukh, deputy engineer Mohini Gaikwad and assistant engineer Radheshyam Joshi responded positively in the case. On the other hand, the MSEDCL officials, including the chief engineer Bhujang Khandare, manager (finance and accounts) Nitin Padaswan and deputy manager Akshay Padaswan were pursuing the matter strongly with AMC.
If the payment had been delayed, the citizens would have faced inconvenience due to the absence of streetlights. The AMC made prompt payment and evaded action like disconnecting power supply of the streetlights, it is said.
Meanwhile, the MSEDCL has appealed to all the local self-bodies and other government offices to pay their pending bills and evade action.