The document summarizes key areas for strengthening electricity regulations in Tamil Nadu to improve service quality for domestic consumers. It identifies issues with access to services, metering and billing practices, distribution standards and compensation, reliability of supply, and consumer grievance redressal. There is a lack of awareness among both electricity board officials and consumers about existing regulations and procedures. Monitoring of compliance is also inadequate. Strengthening regulations in these areas could help enhance service quality for domestic electricity users.

1. Strengthening Electricity Regulations
to Improve Service Quality
to the Domestic Sector
by
Nandikesh S
CAG, Chennai

2. Regulation in Tamil Nadu
• Awareness
• Implementation
• Monitoring
• Effectiveness / Impact

3. Areas of concern…
• Access
• Meter ASSSESSING AND ENHANCING
• Billing
• Distribution Standards and Grievance
Redressal

4. Access
•DOCUMENTATION
•Poor awareness on demanded documents for different
services among consumers / TNEB official
 Amounts charged for services unclear
•INTEREST ON SECURITY DEPOSIT
•Interest on security deposit should notified to the
consumer before end of June every year - Regulation
5(iii) of the Supply Code

5. Meter and Bill
METER CARDS AND BILLS
 The meter cards still state that the regulations followed are that of the
Electricity Supply Act, 1910 according to which 7 days of payment period
and 7 days of grace period is given to a consumer
• Publishing of compliant numbers on meter cards and bills as per Regulation:20 of
the Distribution Standards of Performance Code
METERS
•Availability of meter
Identifying a third party testing laboratory accredited by NABL as per -
Amendment of Regulation 7 of the Supply Code
 Timely regular checks not carried out. There is no minimum period
within which faults in meters should be identified

6. Performance
COMPLAINTS Handling
 Regulation: 20(i) of the ‘Distribution Standards of Performance
• Supply related complaints register
• Meter related complaints register
• Billing and payment related complaints register
 Complaint handling not carried out as per given
procedure
 Complaint tackling inefficient

7. Distribution standards
COMPENSATION
 Regulation:21 of the ‘Distribution Standards of Performance’ - if a Licensee
fails to meet the standards specified for various service areas, the affected
consumer is entitled for compensation by the Licensees as stipulated in the Act
 Section.59.1.(b) of the Electricity Act, 2003 - every licensee should, within the
period specified by the Appropriate Commission, furnish to the Commission, the
number of cases in which compensation was made under subsection (2) of section
57 and the aggregate amount of the compensation
 Section.59.2 of the Electricity Act, 2003 - the Appropriate Commission should
at least once in every year arrange for the publication, in such form and manner as
it considers appropriate, of such of the information furnished to it under sub-
section (1)

8. COMPENSATION
Regulation:22.1 of the ‘Distribution Standards of Performance’ (procedure for
payment of compensation) - Automatic mode of payment requires the Licensee to pay the
compensation amount to the affected consumer automatically, following the non-
compliance to a particular standard in the next billing cycle through credit entry in the
consumption bill
Issue:
 If compensation is to be ‘automatically’ settled, shut downs and interruptions need
to be identified and monitored
 Procedure unclear for monitoring voltage drops and unplanned load shedding
 Regulation not workable if the above is not carried out
Recommendations:
 The regulator should have clear mechanisms to monitor such events

9. INTERRUPTIONS
Regulation: 25 (concerning Service Reliability) of the ‘Distribution Standards of
Performance’ - Reliability of the distribution system operated by the distribution Licensee
should be computed on the basis of number and duration of interruptions in a year
section 2(vii) of Notification No.TNERC / SPR / 9 / 1 - 4 dated 25.07.2006 - the
Licensee should compute and report the value of these indices as per the formula and
methodology specified below:
(a) System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI)
(b) System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI)
The Indices shall be computed for the Distribution Licensee as a whole by stacking, for
each month, all the 11KV/22KV feeders in the supply area, excluding those serving
predominantly agricultural loads, and then aggregating the number and duration of all
interruptions in that month for each feeder

10. Areas of concern…
CGRFs
•Only 18 CGRFs out of 39 has members appointed
•Regulation:6(1) and (2) of the ‘CGRF and electricity Ombudsman’
regulations - the Licensee must notify details such as the address, telephone
numbers and email address of the Forum often in the media. The Licensee
should also make available copies of the procedure for lodging complaints to
the Complainants at free of cost

11. Areas of concern…
AWARENESS
TNEB officials or consumers - unaware of the existence of the CGRF
 Very poor level of awareness on regulations and basic procedures
to be followed in order to file a complaint or to apply for a service of
any kind
 There is confusion the exact rates to be charged for provision of
particular services like name transfer and the service connection
charges
 Awareness of interest on Security deposit was nil

12. THANK YOU