Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s announcement on Saturday to allow 300 units of free power per month to every household will add about Rs 2,000 crore to the annual electricity subsidy bill that the state government has to pay Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL).
The PSPCL has an existing domestic subsidy bill of Rs 4,000 crore. With Mann’s latest announcement, the bill is expected to rise to Rs 6,000 crore. The government already owes the corporation about Rs 7,000 crore.
With successive governments dithering on timely release of payments, the PSPCL was bound to suffer, said an official. He said despite massive earnings, the corporation has had to raise loans against its assets to meet its needs.
