"Efforts should be made to make SERCs accountable in regard to containment of AT&C losses. While determining the tariff of electricity, the burden of commercial losses should not be passed on to the honest consumer," said Parliamentary Standing Committee on Energy in its report.
It noted that "state regulators have become an instrument in the hands of discoms to penalise honest consumers by making them pay for the misdeeds of dishonest consumers and the inefficiency of discoms by taking into consideration the unacceptably high AT&C (aggregate technical and commercial) losses as cost while determining tariff".
It suggested that it is the duty of the regulators that "separation of transmission and commercial losses is clearly reflected in their orders while passing the orders".
The committee asked the government that segregation of transmission and commercial losses be made compulsory.
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It further said the losses occurred from the distribution centres at the outskirts of cities/town/villages till the meter/bill collection be treated as commercial losses.
The panel suggested, "The government of India, with state discoms and regulators, must chalk out an action plan within 3 months. Adequate protection to anti power-theft squad, while conducting raids, should be provided by he state governments.