KARIMNAGAR : The Telangana State Electricity Regulatory Commission (TSERC) has asked the principal secretary of the Energy Department that the Cooperative Electric Supply Society (CESS), responsible for supplying power to consumer and commercial entities, should take appropriate steps for merging with the Telangana State Northern Power Distribution Company Limited (TSNPDCL) under Section 86 (2) of the Electricity Act, 2023.
Recent audits revealed a misuse of Rs 89 crore within CESS, as pointed out in the audit report. Chimmani Prakash, president of Sircilla Division Consumers Welfare Society complaint, filed a complaint with the TSERC regarding the irregularities in CESS and proposed its merger into the TSNPDCL.
CESS vice-chairman Devarakonda Thirupati opposed the merger, asserting that there would be loss if the government paid power subsidies for the Textile and Power loom sector.
He mentioned that CESS has not yet received any letter regarding TSERC’s proposals.
Currently, CESS serves 2.80 lakh connections for domestic, commercial and agriculture purposes.
It reportedly owes outstanding bills worth Rs 866 crore to be paid to the NPDCL. While Rs 25 crore is to be collected from consumers every month, only Rs 13 crore is being collected.
The CESS was established in 1969 and commenced supplying power to the entire Rajanna Sircilla district in 1970.