Neck-deep in debt and mounting losses coupled with sharp reduction in power demand and revenue collection due to the coronavirus pandemic, the UP Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) has sought a loan of Rs 20,940 crore from Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and Rural Electrification Corporation to pay its arrears to the PSU power generating companies (gencos).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a bailout package of Rs 20 lakh crore for different sectors of economy in May. In the package, Rs 90,000 crore was earmarked for the power sector under the Atmanirbhar scheme. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, a day later in her 15-point agenda to boost the economy battered by the pandemic, had announced the details of the Rs 20 lakh crore bailout packages.
