Amended Electricity Act 2022 sparks debate: States feel 'powerless'

State governments - specifically those run by Opposition parties - claim that the amendments will curtail their powers, especially relating to subsidies given to the farm sector

In the last session of Parliament (monsoon  session), the Ministry of Power introduced in the Lok Sabha the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022, with the stated objective of transforming the power sector, with special focus on augmenting the power distribution network in the country.

The amendments met with so much pushback, especially from state governments, that it had to be referred to a standing committee, which is thrashing it out behind closed doors. The last time so much political energy was expended in power sector reform was in 2000 when Andhra Pradesh under Chandrababu Naidu launched a programme of unbundling utilities