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Voice of Electricity Workers EDITORIAL GET REAdy for concerted action
The All India Convention of Electricity Employees and Engineers held in New Delhi on 7th July 2001 took stock of the results of the ongoing power sector reforms and found that the situation is very grave and if not this course is immediately reversed the countries total development will be doomed. The revised target fixed for the eighth plan could not be achieved. The same is the story of the ninth plan. The slippage in the eighth plan was 46.3% and 42.9% in the ninth plan. It was mainly due to the Private Sector did not perform as promised. The new projections being made for tenth and eleventh plan is absolutely unrealistic, and the targets fixed are highly exaggerated and that too 50% is year marked for the Private Sector ignoring the bitter experience. The shabby deal the Maharashtra State Electricity Board entered into with Enron Company is thoroughly exposed now by the Godbole Committee. The Enron case is a telling example where the cost per unit rose to about Rs.8 per unit. They have found that at every stage from the clearance given by the central electricity authority and in all the stages of negotiation on power purchase agreement, the Maharashtra Electricity Board bungled in a serious way perhaps under the direction of the concerned government and due to “extraneous” pressures. The Godbole Committee wants that a judicial enquiry is necessary on this Enron deal. Enron deal is a telling example of Private Sector performance where the cost per unit is about 8 Rs. per unit. However, a new threat is being made by the Enron Company that they will wind up their operations in India, in case the Maharashtra Government fails to go by their contractual commitments. In Orissa too the story is complicated. The unbundling of the State Electricity Board and privatizing generation and distribution is found completely failed to achieve the stated objectives. The power rates hiked tariff and the power supply to larger sections of the rural population is disturbed. Now the AES Company an American firm is threatening to wind up their operations in Orissa after putting the power sector in complete chaotic condition. The stories of other states need no narration here. The power cost was doubled or tripled where reforms are sought to be implemented. Therefore, the privatisation and unbundling route is found to be absolutely unacceptable for the power development of the country and to ensure power for the people at affordable costs. The International experience also proves that the power sector privatisation is not workable and will adversely affect the country’s development and therefore, many are coming back to the state controlled systems. The latest is the Californian experience of which we have given details in our earlier issues. Now the latest position is that the government of California is taking steps to take over the power system under its control. In early July a committee of the state senate passed a resolution enabling the head of the Public Utilities Commission, the State Regulatory Body to scrap deregulation altogether and the State to return, “cost based pricing regulation”. Thus the California state is bringing back power to the state control. The GOI doesn’t take stock of our experience and the ruinous impact of the power policy in the country and do not also take stock of the world experience as noted above the California episode. Therefore, the Electricity Employees and Engineers as suggested in the decision of the Delhi Convention must get ready for a concerted action to force the Government for changing their policy.
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