The terms of the present members of the West Bengal State Electricity Board (WBSEB) may be extended by a few months in view of the impending restructuring of the states power sector.
The 3-year term of the present board led by S R Shikdar ends on April 30.
Since the Board is not likely to continue in its present form when the restructuring takes place, there is a view within the government that formation of the new board can wait till that time.
The government will have to scout for a number of talents to man the new organisations that are expected to be set up with specialiesed responsibilities for various areas of the power sector.
The N C Basu committee, which is at present examining various proposals for the restructuring, is toying with various ideas. The original idea was to entrust the West Bengal Powwer Development Corporation (WBPDCL) with the task of running all the thermal power stations. There is a thinking that WBSEB may be allowed to run its Bandel and Santaldih thermal power plants to maintain an atmosphere of competition.
Not many, however, are ready to buy this argument as there is little sense of competition between WBSEB and WBPDCL who own different thermal power plants. The power plant of the Durgapur Projects Ltd, however, is sure to come under the WBPDCL umbrella.
The N C Basu committee is also considering creation of a hydel power corporation in view of significant addition to the states hydroelectric capacity in the next few years. Besides the existing small hydel plants, a 900mw pumps storage hydel power plant will be commissioned in another 4-5 years at Purulia.
The transmission and distribution are likely to remain with WBSEB.
If the current thinking in Delhi is translated into action, none of the power distribution agencies will have to fear bankruptcy due to unremunerative tariff. The state governments will now be required to compensate the distribution agencies for any unremunerative tariff structure fixed for political expediency.
If this new policy comes into practice neither the WBSEB nor the proposed rural power corporation will suffer loss for inadequate tariff revenue.
West Bengal is now set to witness the birth of several new power agencies. There is, however, a strong opposition from all the workers unions about dismemberment of WBSEB.
Irrespective of the recommendations of the Basu committee, the state government will have to take note of the views of the trade unions before the final restructure plan can be drawn up.
Fresh look at rural electrification body
The proposed new corporation to look after rural electrification, which was originally planned to be placed under the department of rural development, may remain with the power department.
State finance minister Asim Dasgupta had announced in his budget speech that this new corporation will be nodally connected with the rural development department, but act in coordination with the WBSEBB. But following a quick rethinking, the state government has now decided to keep the corporation under the power department though it will be independent of the WBSEB.
The unexpected decision to place the proposed corporation under a different department was viewed as an indictment of the department of power.
The state government may not have actually revised its assessment of the power departments competence, but, has revised the decision realising the practical difficulties of coordinating between two departments over the functioning of the corporation.
