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Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme will hit Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board economy: Staff
The Board Employees’ Union, while demanding an affidavit from the officers implementing the scheme, said they should tell how the board would benefit from it
Employees of the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board are up in arms against the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS). The employees believe that the implementation of the scheme will not only put a burden on consumers but also derail the economy of the electricity board.
The Board Employees’ Union, while demanding an affidavit from the officers implementing the scheme, said they should tell how the board would benefit from it.
They alleged that on the instructions of the chief minister, the tenders of RDSS worth ₹3,700 crore were cancelled in the past, but now the bureaucracy is taking it forward again.
“As a result, anger is growing among the employees. The issue of not going ahead with this scheme was also discussed in a joint front meeting of the board personnel held on Monday,” said Electricity Board Employees’ Union president KD Sharma.
He said by implementing the scheme, the board management is pushing the RDSS is not in the interest of the state and electricity consumers.
“This will put a huge financial burden on electricity consumers and the government. In the first phase of the scheme, smart meters would be installed. However, the Centre will be giving only ₹400 crore grant for its implementation and the burden of the remaining ₹2,600 crore will be on the power consumers of the state due to a possible increase in electricity rates by ₹125 per month,” he alleged.
He said the same trend will be followed for the proposed tenders for the second phase power system improvement.
For the second phase also, the Central government will give ₹1,620 crore and the remaining burden of ₹1,380 crore will be borne by the consumers of the state due to with an approximate increase in electricity rates by ₹80 per month.
He said the grant of ₹2,000 crore proposed in the RDSS will also be available only if the targets set in the scheme are met, but the possibility of meeting the unencumbered targets set is very less, due to which there is every possibility of converting this amount into loan. The burden of the remaining amount of about ₹4,000 crore of the scheme is already on the consumers of the state. In this way, the electricity rates would increase by ₹205 per month.
Sharma said a pilot project launched in Paonta Sahib at a cost of ₹32 crore to install smart meters was a big failure as only 50% meters are sending data.
