Lok Sabha Question No. 802 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-09-17
Subject: Losses to DISCOMs
Ministry: POWER
Asked by: Ranjeetsingh Naik Nimbalkar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF POWER

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.802 TO BE ANSWERED ON 17.09.2020

## LOSSES TO DISCOMS

802.   SHRI RANJEETSINGH HINDURAO NAIKNIMBALKAR:

Will the Minister of POWER be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the DISCOMs are running under huge losses and if so, the details thereof during the last three years, State/UT-wise;
- (b) whether the Government has prepared any plan or strategy to reduce the losses of the DISCOMs and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has done any study with regard to the cause of losses to the DISCOMs; and
- (d) if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  action  taken  by  the  Government  in  this regard?

## A N S W E R

THE  MINISTER  OF  STATE  (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  FOR  POWER,  NEW  & RENEWABLE ENERGY AND THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR SKILL DEVELOPMENT & ENTREPRENEURSHIP

( SHRI  R.K. SINGH)

- (a)  : The State/UT-wise Profit/ (Loss) for distribution utilities during the last three years is available at Annexure.
- (b) to (d) : The evaluation of losses of DISCOMs is carried out and discussed with the States and their utilities continuously. There are several reasons for DISCOM losses,  which  include  high  AT&C  losses;  tariffs  not  being  reflective  of  costs; uncovered revenue gaps; payment of subsidies by State not in accordance with announcements, etc.

Distribution  of  electricity,  and  management  of  operational  and financial  efficiency  of  DISCOMs  is  overseen  by  the  respective  states  and  their Utilities.  Government  of  India  have  been  assisting  states  under  schemes  such as   Deen  Dayal  Upadhyaya  Gram  Jyoti  Yojana  (DDUGJY),  Integrated  Power Development Scheme (IPDS) for bringing about  loss reduction by measures such as  separation  of  Feeders;  IT  enablement;  metering  of  Feeders,  Distribution transformers  and  consumers  to  facilitate  energy  accounting.  In  addition,  for operational and financial turnaround of distribution utilities by reducing Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) losses, the Government initiated Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY).

………2.

Certain reforms measures such as reduction of Aggregate Technical &  Commercial  (AT&C)  losses;  reduction  of  average  cost  of  supply -average revenue realized (ACS-ARR) gap; and introduction of direct benefit transfer (DBT) for  payment  of  subsidies  have  been  linked  by  the  Government  to  additional borrowing permissions of 0.25% of the State Gross Domestic Product (GSDP) to be accorded to  the  States  in  wake  of  COVID-19.  Government  have  also  linked  the disbursals of the liquidity infusion package for the power sector in the wake of COVID-19 to reform measures such as digital payment of electricity bills; enabling selfassessment  by  consumers;  states'  undertaking  to  liquidate  outstanding payments  to  DISCOMs;  installation  of  smart  prepaid  or  prepaid  meters  in government departments; timely payment of subsides due; and an action plan to be provided by states to bring down their losses over the next three to four years.

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ANNEXURE

ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 802 TO BE ANSWERED IN THE LOK SABHA ON 17.09.2020.

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## Profit After Tax (PAT) of Distribution Utilities in States

(Figures in INR Crore)

| States            | 2016-17   | 2017-18   | 2018-19   |
|-------------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|
| Andhra Pradesh    | (2,282)   | (2)       | (11,934)  |
| Arunachal Pradesh | (324)     | (429)     | (428)     |
| Assam             | (34)      | 165       | 21        |
| Bihar             | (1,257)   | (2,650)   | (2,409)   |
| Chhattisgarh      | (422)     | (279)     | (42)      |
| Delhi             | 404       | 491       | 799       |
| Goa               | (283)     | 26        | (172)     |
| Gujarat           | 275       | 426       | 184       |
| Haryana           | (193)     | 412       | 281       |
| Himachal Pradesh  | (111)     | 4         | 4         |
| Jammu & Kashmir   | (4,063)   | (2,999)   | (2,902)   |
| Jharkhand         | (1,741)   | (212)     | (751)     |
| Karnataka         | (1,119)   | (522)     | 970       |
| Kerala            | (1,495)   | (784)     | (290)     |
| Madhya Pradesh    | (1,470)   | (5,284)   | (7,159)   |
| Maharashtra       | 785       | 492       | 1,097     |
| Manipur           | (15)      | (8)       | (19)      |
| Meghalaya         | (343)     | (287)     | (203)     |
| Mizoram           | (147)     | 87        | (83)      |
| Nagaland          | (62)      | (62)      | (325)     |
| Odisha            | (913)     | (792)     | (1,539)   |
| Puducherry        | (8)       | 6         | (36)      |
| Punjab            | (2,836)   | (907)     | (38)      |
| Rajasthan         | (1,981)   | 2,173     | 2,607     |
| Sikkim            | (115)     | (29)      | (3)       |
| Tamil Nadu        | (4,349)   | (7,761)   | (12,623)  |
| Telangana         | (6,202)   | (5,485)   | (8,019)   |
| Tripura           | 40        | 28        | 21        |
| Uttar Pradesh     | (3,322)   | (5,002)   | (6,032)   |
| Uttarakhand       | (289)     | (229)     | (553)     |
| West Bengal       | (25)      | (40)      | (45)      |
| Grand Total       | (33,894)  | (29,452)  | (49,623)  |

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