Haryana Cabinet has decided to provide loan of Rs 750 crore to the discoms at a concessional rate of interest which is about 3 per cent lower than the market rate under the Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) Scheme.
As per the scheme, the State Government was required to take over 75 per cent of the debt of Haryana DISCOMs as on September 30, 2015. The total debt as on the said date was estimated to be Rs 34,600 crore and 75 per cent of the debt amounting to Rs 25,950 crore has already been taken over by the State Government and bonds issued there against at an average interest rate of 8.2 per cent per annum.
The Cabinet was informed that various initiatives and schemes have been implemented to reduce Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT and C) losses in the State, said an official spokesman.
Haryana DISCOMs have implemented the Surcharge Waiver Scheme and Voluntary Disclosure Scheme in financial year 2016-17 and 2017-18 for recovery of defaulting amount. As many as 179521 consumers opted for the Surcharge Waiver Scheme and an amount of Rs 177.15 crore has been received from them. Similarly, 88722 consumers opted
the Voluntary Disclosure Scheme and an amount of Rs 30.41 crore has been received from them.
Also, aggressive Theft Detection campaign has been initiated and in the last 3 months, thefts of Rs. 126 crore have been detected, the spokesman added.
Haryana Municipal Entertainment Duty Bill, 2017 approved
The State Government will introduce “The Haryana Municipal Entertainment Duty Bill, 2017” to levy entertainment duty for admission to public entertainments in the State. An approval was given by the cabinet in this regard.
The entertainment duty to be imposed on public entertainments will be collected by Urban local Bodies concerned and the funds received would be utilized for the development or betterment of civic amenities in the urban areas by the municipality, said the official spokesman.
HSIIDC one time settlement scheme
The cabinet has approved the One-time Settlement Scheme of Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) for clearance of enhanced cost default in one go by allottees of industrial plots with grant of 75 per cent rebate in the amount of interest and delayed interest in default.
The scheme of clearance of enhanced cost default in one go shall be applicable for allottees of industrial plots of HSIIDC who are in default towards payment of enhanced compensation against demands raised from them.
Nod to Haryana Voluntary State Education Service Rules, 2017
Haryana Voluntary State Education Service Rules, 2017 was given approval for taking over the teaching and non-teaching staff working on sanctioned or aided posts in aided schools.
Under these rules, grant-in-aid would not be payable to the aided schools in respect of the posts incumbent of which have been taken over in the Voluntary Education Service.
Retirement age increased in Zila Sainik Boards
The cabinet decided that the persons heading Zila Sainik Boards and Assistant Secretary of the Rajya Sainik Board would retire at the age of 60 years instead of 58 years at present.
Haryana Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2017, approved
The cabinet approved the Haryana Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2017, and reduced the rate of interest from 1.5 per cent to one per cent on amount of tax due and penalty.
This Ordinance would validate the tax collected from September 19, 2016 to March 31, 2017. The reduction in the rate of interest from 1.5 per cent to one per cent would further rationalise the interest rate.