Indian Kanoon - Search engine for Indian Law

15. In this connection it is necessary to refer to the observations of a Division Bench of this Court in similar circumstances, to the extent relevant in V.K.Ferro Alloys Industries Pvt. Ltd. v. A.P. State Electricity Board, , as under:--

"7. Now the question is whether the orders issued by the Government in G.O. Ms. No.654, dated 13.7.1976 and subsequent orders in G.O. Ms. No.38, dated 20.1.1977 which were followed by the Board in its B.P. were in conformity with the directions of the Government? Section 78-A of the Act merely gives power to the Government to issue directions on questions of policy and the Board shall be guided by it. The most important aspect of the case is that though the Board mentions about the concessions for specified H.T. consumers, in Clause (7) of B.P. Ms. No.689, dated 17th September, 1975, it has neither specified the industries which will be entitled for the concessions nor the date on which the rebate will come into force. In such circumstances, the Board approached the State Government and in turn the State Government took the decision after considering all the aspect and the decision came out in the form of G.O. Ms. No.654, Industries and Commerce, dated 13.7.1976, Allowing or disallowing the benefit of power tariff concessions to any category of industries is evidently a policy matter of highest importance and that is the reason why the Electricity Board did not independently take a decision in that regard and it was left to the Government.

16. Another Division Bench of this Court in A.P.S.E.B. v. Venus Hotel, Khammam, AIR 1999 AP 333, in similar circumstances while dealing with the effect of implementation of the policy decision of the Government by the Electricity Board, made certain observations at paragraph No.5 of the judgment and the relevant portion is extracted as under:

"In our considered view the learned Single Judge has rightly come to the conclusion that G.O.Ms.No.31, dated 30.4.1994 was a policy decision issued by the State Government granting concession. It is the just expectation of the citizen that the policy-decision of the State would be carried out by all its instrumentalities without any reservation ..... Concedingly, the policy-decision of the facts does not apply to the respondents. The only ground that it was not adopted by the Electricity Board does not denude the respondent No.1 from the right to the concession on the basis of which the respondent No.1 has established the industry nor it would be a ground for the appellant - Electricity Board to decline the concession to which the respondent is entitled as a Stale policy. In the eventuality of permitting an instrumentality of the State to run contrary to the State policies no State policy could be implemented and the progress of the State would be hampered. .... The policy issued is squarely covered by a direction under Section 78-A of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948. It does not require any specific mention or a specific direction to the instrumentalities of the State to follow its policy. In ordinary course the instrumentalities of the State are expected to follow the policy of the State framed from time to time."