State electricity board handed its power back
The government has handed back the administrative control of Chief Engineer (System Operations) from the Himachal Pradesh Energy Management Centre (HPEMC) to Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Ltd (HPSEBL). Following the decision, the HPSEBL will carry out responsibilities like signing power purchase agreements, payment of energy bills and arrangement of power to meet the state’s demand. The government had constituted the HPEMC in January this year to carry out these functions.
The HPSEBL Employee Union, which had opposed the transfer of powers from the electricity board to the HPEMC in the first place and had even gone to the court on the issue, said the move was one of the many decisions concerning the power sector that the government had withdrawn in recent times.
“Several decisions taken in the last one year or so were not thought through. Before this, the proposal to transfer 100 MW Uhl project from the HPSEBL to the HPPCL had to be eventually dropped and the four small hydroelectric projects in district Chamba had to be returned to the HPSEBL after they were transferred to the HPPCL,” said union secretary HL Verma. “Besides, the plan to bring in private discom to provide power to the Bulk Drug Park in Una was dropped and then the unsuccessful attempts were made to stop free power to the HPSEBL,” said Verma.
He further alleged that these ill-considered decisions and plans had not only delayed the projects but also caused financial loss to the state. “Following the latest decision, the HPSEBL will have to arrange power to meet the state’s increased demand in winters. Normally, the agreements and tie-ups are done at the start of the year, when rates could be negotiated. Now it’s late and the board will have to buy power at the prevailing rates to meet the winter demand,” he said.
The government has returned the administrative control of Chief Engineer (System Operations) to the HPSEBL for 2024-25 after Himachal Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (HPERC) declared that the HPEMC’s entity was neither formed as per India Electricity ACT, 2003, nor it was registered with the HPERC.
