If you want to invest some time in understanding the power situation in Delhi, this is a seminal piece of work. No one would know the situation better than Shakti Sinha who has been Power and later Finance Sectretary Delhi. Unfortunately AK is not literate but had he really wanted to understand the involved this should have been compulsory reading for him. Next time do remind me please we need to hire a literate CM. Delhi’s power situation: A reality check January 8, 2013 Shakti Sinha Delhi’s power scenario is back at the centre of public attention in ways unprecedented since the reforms were carried out in the sector 2003-04. Having campaigned on a platform that promised reduction in electricity tariffs by 50%, the Aam Aadmi Party was quick to deliver by announcing a subsidy of 50% on power bills for those consuming less than 400 units per month, which would cover over 70% of all consumers in Delhi. AAP alleged that the private distribution companies (discoms) had been fudging their accounts to show losses while in fact they were making huge profits from sales of surplus electricity to/through their sister trading companies. Hence AAP said that they would want a CAG audit that would establish these ‘profits’, based which the tariff reduction would be carried out. Parallel to the subsidy announcement, the Delhi government announced that CAG would be auditing the books of accounts of the three discoms since privatisation in 2003. In a climate where retail inflation has been over 10% for most of the last five years, have power tariffs become a whipping boy since it is a visible target? Or are fears about private discoms skimming the system for their private good justified? It is therefore appropriate to review and understand the situation as it exists, how it evolved and identify the issues involved. The focus of this article will be on the distribution side since it is this component of the sector that comes into close contact with the public. Power supply in the pre-independence days in Delhi was by a private company. Subsequently with the passing of the Electricity (Supply) Act 1948, the Delhi Electric Supply Board came up. This became the Delhi Electric Supply Undertaking (DESU) and it became a part of the Municipal Corporation in 1957.
Posted on: Sat, 01 Feb 2014 08:15:18 +0000
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