Kulman Ghising Urges Immediate Recovery of Dedicated and Trunkline Dues

Former executive director of Nepal Electricity Authority Kulman Ghising has urged the government and concerned bodies to immediately recover outstanding premium electricity charges from industrial customers that used power through dedicated and trunkline services. Sharing his views on social media, Ghising said industries that consumed electricity through special facilities during a time when ordinary citizens were facing up to 18 hours of daily load-shedding have a legal responsibility to pay the premium tariff. He said that when he moved ahead with the recovery process as NEA executive director, there was interference from the then political leadership and he faced action because of it. However, he said his commitment to the state’s interest and implementation of the law never weakened.

According to Ghising, after taking charge of the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, he had decided to speed up the recovery of dedicated and trunkline dues. He said the NEA Board of Directors made a decision and instructed the management to strictly proceed with recovery as per law. After that, most industries paid the first installment, but the recovery process later failed to move forward effectively, and even industries that had started paying installments stopped their payments. Ghising said the law must be equal for all and no person or institution should be allowed to escape responsibility because of influence, access or pressure. He said the issue should not be delayed again through excuses and urged the government and concerned bodies to recover the amount owed to the state treasury. He also asked industries to use the available installment facility and fulfill their obligations, saying no one can stand above the rule of law and the interest of the state.