Report of Indian Institute of Public Administration ... - Ministry of Power

State Reports (Vol.-III)
Study on `Impact of Restructuring of SEBs’
they do not want to go through the process of reconnection. Surprisingly, the
Board does not suffer any interference from any quarters for delaying
disconnections. Consumers including industrial consumers accept this system
being followed in a non-discriminatory fashion. This time-tested system is the
main reason why the Board has been able to achieve almost 100 per cent
collection. Municipalities and other local bodies are the only defaulters, since the
Board is not a position to disconnect – it, however, collects this amount from any
government dues to these local bodies. All the same, any arrear the Board has
invariably belongs to local bodies.
• Theft of energy is a major concern for most of the Boards, but not so for the
TNEB. The reason is the good discipline of inspections, checking and
prosecution that it has been able to enforce over the years. The Board has an
excellent system of checking thefts under an Inspector General of police, who is
independent of the technical head. He collects information on electricity thefts
and conducts periodic raids in consumer premises. Although most cases are
compounded with a huge penalty, prosecution is also launched in a few cases.
Such raids and prosecutions are publicised in the media to instil fear among the
consumers. The Board’s staff also are generally vigilant against theft, since
detection of thefts by the independent teams under the IG will bring a bad name
to them. These steps have kept energy thefts low in the State. The level of theft
has not been assessed separately, though the total T&D losses of the Board have
been estimated to be 18 per cent.
• A good work culture among employees of the Board is another important reason
behind its strength. They are technically sound and are conscious of the need for
improved services to the public. As they have to deal with vigilant and
demanding consumers, they have to equip themselves to meet the increasing
demand of consumers. The level of corruption is low, and hence performance is
better. All Divisional Engineers and Superintending Engineers are conscious of
the need for 100 per cent metering, billing and collection and hence monitor
these aspects continuously. These are monitored regularly even at the Board
level. The Board and its employees are thus focussed on the essential
performance parameters, which obviously contributes to its better performance.
Weaknesses of the Board
Although TNEB has many strengths, it suffers due to some of the policies of the State
Government. Free power for the agricultural sector is not only a financial drain on the
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