Panaji: The operations of Goa Police’s Calangute Traffic Cell have come to a standstill after the Gram Panchayat switched off the main power switch over non-payment of electricity bill of Rs 8 lakh.This cell has been working at Poriyat Football Ground in Tiwai Vaddo since 2012. The traffic cell was shifted from the Calangute police station premises on the request of the former CM. Manohar Parrikar.Traffic Cell failed to pay its electricity bill for over a decade, resulting in disconnection.Calangute sarpanch Joseph Sequeira said that SAIL has not paid a single rupee to the panchayat regarding electricity bill since 2012. He said several letters were written to the SP, DYSP and PI of Calangute traffic cell to inform them about the dues, but there was no communication from the cell. On April 2, Calangute Panchayat wrote its last letter to the SP, DYSP and PI of SAIL.In the letter, the panchayat informed them that if they failed to pay the amount within seven days, the panchayat would disconnect their electricity. “We waited for seven days, but there was no communication from the traffic cell. After waiting for about 24 days, we decided to turn off the main power switch and cut off the power supply,” Sequeira said.The Sarpanch said that the Panchayat has been regularly paying the electricity bill to the Electricity Department, but the Calangute Traffic Cell has not paid the electricity bill to the Panchayat. He also said that since there was shortage of space at the Calangute police station, the panchayat allowed the cell to be moved to the football ground.“We have been writing letters to the traffic cell and even to the chief minister to shift the Calangute traffic cell from the football ground to the Calangute police station premises as the Saligao police station has been shifted from the Calangute police station premises, but there has been no response to the letters,” Sequeira said.The Sarpanch also said that not only the electricity bill amount, but the panchayat is also diverting the dirty water generated by the police personnel in the traffic cell. “We sent sewerage tankers and removed the waste generated by police personnel, and that amount has also been borne by the panchayat,” he said.Sikera also said that in the early days, the panchayat had also provided a four-wheeler to the Calangute Traffic Cell to manage the traffic in Calangute, and the cost of fuel and maintenance was borne by the panchayat.