PUBLIC HEALTH ENGG. DEPTT. vs MARIE D. SILVA

THIS appeal filed by the appellant department is against the order of the learned District Forum, Jaipur-I dated 2.6.2000 allowing the complaint filed by the respondent and directing the appellant to pay an amount of Rs. 3,500/- for expenses incurred by her as also for mental agony and cost of litigation and further directed to recover the aforesaid amount from the delinquent officials of the appellant.

WE heard the learned Counsel for the parties at great length and perused the material available on the record. The respondent had approached the learned District Forum complaining that she is a retired teacher of a private school and gets a pension of Rs. 250/- p.m. only and has a water supply connection in her house. It has been the grievance of the respondent that though she is living with only her younger sister and there is no much consumption of water and she had been receiving the water consumption bills at the minimum rates for past so many years, yet she received a water consumption bill for the month of Feb., 1997 exhibiting the consumption of 16000 ltrs. of water, mainly because she had refused to part with any amount to the Meter-Reader suggesting the delivery of bills for minimum amount as has been in the earlier years. It has further been the grievance of the respondent that not only for the month of Feb. but for the months of March, April, June and July, 1997 she repeatedly got the bills for consumption of similar quantity of water and every time she had to run to the offices of the appellant to get the bills corrected and succeeded in it. Similarly another bill of July, 1997 was also corrected by the concerned Engineer and she was directed to deposit a lesser amount. However, when for the months of Jan. and Feb., 1998 bills were received by her, it was found that in the said bills, consumption for the months of December, 1997, January and February, 1998 was also shown as arrears although she had deposited the amounts as corrected by the earlier Engineer from time to time. On 21.2.1998, when she went to get it corrected in the office of the appellant, some other Engineer was found posted instead, who refused to make any corrections in the aforesaid bill and directed her to deposit the demanded amount.

Aggrieved, she approached the learned District Forum to seek not only compensation for mental agony and physical discomfort but also expenses incurred by her to approach the appellant''s officials time and again. The learned District Forum after consideration of the pleadings of both the parties, decreed the claim in favour of the respondent as stated earlier.

IT is now urged by the learned Counsel for the appellant that since timely corrections were made in the bills delivered to the respondent, she is not entitled for any compensation or expenses as asked for by her. The learned Counsel, however, admits that whatsoever mistakes have occurred in furnishing the bills of water consumption to the respondent, it has been only because of some mechanism in the feeding of the computer which could not be corrected except after she personally complained about the mistakes in them. IT has, therefore, been urged that the appeal be accepted and the direction and order given by the District Forum be quashed. On the other hand, the learned Counsel for the respondent has supported the impugned order. We have given due thought and consideration to the grievance of the respondent as also the version of the appellant. It is apparent not only from the pleadings of the appellant but also from the conduct of the officials of the appellant; that the respondent has been made a target for harrassment. She is a retired teacher and in receipt of a paltry amount as pension. This Commission can comprehend the mental agony and physical discomfort undergone by a woman who is a retired lady teacher of advanced age; and who had to run to the offices of the Government time and again, particularly to the office of the appellant in getting the water consumption bills corrected almost every month right from the month of January, 1997 till November, 1998. The appellant cannot escape from the consequences flowing from their rigid and inhuman attitude meted out to a lady of advanced age; simply by taking a stand that there has been some mistake with the computer. Now-a-days the technology and mechanism of computers is also very advanced and, therefore, if it has been found by the appellant''s officials that there is some mistake in the feeding of the computer even in the month of February, 1997, it could have been got corrected; if not by themselves by taking the assistance and help of an expert in the computer operations. In our opinion, the appellant''s officials have not only been guilty for deficiency in service to the respondent but also of causing avoidable physical and mental agony to her. We, therefore, do not find any merit whatsoever in the appeal filed by the appellant, which is dismissed with cost at Rs. 2,500/- to be recovered from the delinquent officials in addition to the compensation and cost awarded by the learned D.F. Order accordingly. Appeal dismissed.