(1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, -
(a) “Act” means the Electricity Act, 2003(36 of 2003);
(b) “Annexure” means the annexure to these Regulations;
(c) “Commission” means the Himachal Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission;
(d) “complainant” means and includes –
(i) any consumer or consumers including their legal heirs or successors, having grievance/complaint against a licensee and lodging the same either directly or through their representatives, or
(ii) any voluntary consumer association or associations, registered under the law for the time being in force and making the complaints in the larger common or similar interest of the consumers, or Compendium of HPERC Regulations, March 2021 3
(iii) any person whose electricity connection is disconnected, or
(iv) an applicant for a new connection for the supply of electricity;
(d) “grievance” means, and includes any complaint, relating to any fault, imperfection, shortcoming or inadequacy in the quality, nature and manner of performance which has been undertaken to be performed by a licensee in pursuance of a licence, contract, agreement or under the Electricity Supply Code or in relation to the Distribution Performance Standards of the licensees, as specified by the Commission, and includes billing disputes of any nature and matters related to safety of the distribution system having potential of endangering life or property;
(e) “Forum” means the Forum for Redressal of Grievances of Consumers required to be established, by the distribution licensee, pursuant to sub-section
(5) of section 42 of the Act and the guidelines contained in these Regulations;
(g) “licensee” means a licensee authorised to operate and maintain a distribution system for supplying electricity to the consumers in his area of supply and includes a deemed licensee;
(h) “Member” means the Member of the Forum and includes the Chairperson of the Forum;
(i) “Ombudsman” means an authority appointed or designated by the Commission, under sub-section (6) of section 42 of the Act, and these Regulations, with whom a representation may be made by any person, who is dissatisfied by the redressal or is aggrieved by the non-redressal of his grievances by the Forum;
(j) “representation” means the representation made to the Ombudsman by a complainant, who is aggrieved by the order of the Forum (including the partial or full dismissal order), or non-redressal of his grievances by the Forum within the specified time or dissatisfaction with the order issued by the Forum or nonimplementation of the Forum’s order by the licensee within the specified time;
(k)“time lines” means the time specified in Annexure-I or any other provisions of these Regulations for processing any complaint or representation made under these Regulations.
(2) The other words and expressions used and not defined in these Regulations, but defined in the Act, shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Act.