Madras High Court today upheld a March 18, 2011 central government notification, which prevented power generating agencies from levying service charges for supply of fly ash to brick manufacturers and said the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation cannot levy and collect any charge for the supply of the residue to them.
Acting on appeals by Tamil Nadu Fly Ash Bricks and Blocks Manufacturers Association and two others, a bench comprising Justices N Paul Vasanthakumar and K Ravcichandrabaabu passed an order to this effect.
The petitioners had challenged a single judge order of June 13, 2013, permitting collection of tax/service for supply of fly-ash by the government.
"TANGEDCO, which is an industry manufacturing power through thermal Stations is bound to follow the directions issued by the Centre which had a statutory force. When the competent authority has prohibited collection of service charge for fly ash from bricks manufacturers, TANGEDCO is not entitled to collect the same," the bench said.
It also rejected TANGEDCO's contention that if service charge was not collected, the same would have to be passed on to consumers.
TANGEDCO definitely cannot do it as it is not expenditure being met to generate power and only incidental expenses incurred for collection of bye product i.E fly ash, it said.
Undoubtedly such expenditure has to be borne by the power manufacturer as a mandatory measure to comply with the Provisions of Environmental (protection) Act, it said.
The bench said considering facts and circumstances of the case and scope of original notification, subsequent amendments to it and earlier orders of a division bench, of which one was confirmed by the Supreme Court and another had become final as it was not challenged, it felt the single judge's order cannot be sustained "as it has the effect of giving a contra finding to earlier decisions of the bench.
