Raia power users stranded
THE GOAN NETWORK
MARGAO
Power consumers from Raia are up in arms over the fact that they will now have to travel all the way to Margao to pay the power bills as the bank at Arlem has refused to accept cash payments with immediate effect.
The consumers told The Goan that the UCO Bank, which was accepting cash payments, has stopped the facility for want of manpower, with bank officials saying the bank would only receive cheque payments in the future.
When The Goan contacted the UCO Bank manager to shed light on the development, he accepted that the bank has decided to stop the cash payment facility for want of manpower. In fact, the bank had stopped acceptance of water bills since January 1, this year with the PWD failing to pay the promised commission to the bank.
Given the situation, the local residents are now planning to call on the power officials in Margao to work out a mechanism wherein the power consumers need not travel to Margao to make the cash payments. “How can the power department expect the poor people to make cheque payments to the bank? We feel the power department should open a cash payment facility at Raia itself for the benefit of the power consumers,” a local resident Anthony Fernandes told The Goan on Sunday.
