Telangana DISCOMS in debt trap, Govt ready to overcome challenges : Bhatti

Telangana Energy minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka has said that the previous Telangana Government has forced the Discoms in the debt trap by not maintaining healthy fiscal policy in the energy sector.

Releasing a White Paper on Power sector, the minister said that discoms are resorting to borrowings on a regular basis which have reached unsustainable

proportions. There is very limited scope to continue to fund the purchase of power through these means. Discoms are now finding themselves in debt trap due to failure of government in paying its dues and commitments to the sector.

Despite the above legacy of financial imprudence, Government is committed to providing quality and reliable power to the people of the state by overcoming the challenges faced by the sector with a responsible and transparent approach.

The accumulated losses of discoms as on 31.03.2023 stand at Rs. 62,461 Cr. Discoms have a debt of Rs. 81,516 Cr (as on 31.10.2023). Of this, an amount of Rs. 30,406 Cr has been borrowed as working capital primarily to pay power charges to the generators. Despite this, an amount of Rs. 28,673 Cr of generation and transmission dues remain to be paid by discoms.

The difficulty faced by discoms in paying power purchase bills has been aggravated by the default of Government in paying the power bills of its own departments which have now mounted to Rs. 28,842 Cr. Of this, the amount due from lift irrigation projects alone is Rs. 14,193 Cr. Government’s default in paying committed true up charges of Rs. 14,928 Cr has further contributed to the further deterioration of discom finances.