Hyderabad: Discoms in both Telangana state and Andhra Pradesh are now busy revisiting the statistics they had finalised in their Annual Revenue Requirement reports, as some doubts have been raised on the accuracy of the reasons shown for the heavy losses.
While a thorough re-examination has already been sought by Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, a similar exercise is now being taken up by AP energy ministry officials.
The ARRs have to be submitted to the Electricity Regulatory Committees of both states separately by January 8. Power charges will be hiked based on the reports and come into effect in the next fiscal year.
AP principal secretary of power Ajay Jain does not rule out the possibility of further extension for submission of reports. “Let us see whether the discoms can submit the reports by the deadline or not,” he said.
One of the main reasons for re-examination of proposals was said to be that the discoms had reportedly jacked up the figures with respect to supply of free power to the agricultural pumpsets.
The discoms have shown that the losses were solely due to free power supply, putting aside other major factors like, transmission and distribution losses, power pilferage, mounting salary bills, other establishment expenses etc.
Some officials felt that common man is being continuously targeted in the name of benefit to the farmers.
“Obviously, free power is the main contributor towards heavy losses, which have gone up to Rs 5,800 crore. How can we mitigate them? We are purchasing power for Rs 7 per unit and supplying it free for agriculture. There are 18.54 lakh working agriculture pumpsets in Telangana and 14.74 lakh in AP,” said a TS official.
Transmission losses have been shown in 2014-15 as 3.24 per cent, while power theft is said to be around 1.7 per cent. As per the Indian Electricity Act 1910, power theft is a cognisable offence amounting to a deterrent punishment of three years of imprisonment, but the officials hardly book cases. Energy auditing is also not being done sincerely, according to the sources. More than three per cent of commercial losses are also adding up to Rs 1,100 crore annually, reports suggest.
