CHANDIGARH: Due to the free power of 300 units per month being given to domestic consumers by the AAP-led Punjab Government, there is an additional burden of Rs 2,550 crore per year on the state government. Thus now, the total electricity subsidy bill stands at Rs 27,420 crore.
The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has revised its subsidy estimates for the year 2022-23. Earlier, the total subsidy due to PSPCL was Rs 24,865.63 crore which included a subsidy estimate of Rs 15,845.63 crore and there was a carry forward of Rs 9,020 crore.
Now, the estimated subsidy has been increased by Rs 4,354.37 crore and stands at Rs 18,396 crore for the financial year 2022-23 from the earlier estimate of Rs 15,845.63 crore in view of the free power of 300 units being given to domestic consumers.
The revised amount includes Rs 2,550 crore against freebies. It may be mentioned that recently, the state government had decided to clear the carry forward of Rs 9,020 crore in five equal instalments to the power utility. A sum of Rs 1,804 crore is the amount of carry forward that the government will pay to the PSPCL this year, said sources.
As per sources in the PSPCL, the state government has till February 2 paid a sum of Rs 13,971.19 crore in cash and made book adjustments of Rs 3,527.45 crore against the Infrastructure Development Fund (IDF) and Electricity Duty (ED) collected by PSPCL from power consumers on behalf of the state government.
The PSPCL has stated that Rs 18,252.18 crore was to be paid in advance till February 15. The remaining amount is to be cleared by March 31.
It is worth mentioning that the revised subsidies are only an estimated cost of free power, and the actual cost might be more in view of over 90 per cent of power consumers receiving zero power bills during the winter season. The government has assured the public that it will do everything in its power to fulfil its promise of providing free power to domestic consumers.
Talking to this newspaper, Jasvir Singh Dhiman, president, PSEB Engineers Association said, “As the PSPCL is running in the red, the government should pay the subsidy amount on time and also the government departments should clear their electricity bills, which come to around Rs 2,600 crore so that the financial condition of the corporation remains intact.”