MERC to undertake third-party verification of agri sales

State electricity regulator MERC has decided to undertake third-party verification of agricultural sales to get an accurate assessment of agricultural consumption in Maharashtra.

It will take at least a year to complete the assessment as the regulator will have to consider the sales of different agricultural seasons as the energy requirements may differ, according to Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) member Mukesh Khullar.

"We feel there are discrepancies in the data received on agricultural sales from state discom MSEDCL. To ensure accurate assessment of such sales, we have decided to set up a committee which will undertake third-party verification," Khullar told reporters at an interactive session organised by the Mumbai Press Club.

"We hope that the report will be completed by March 2020," he said.

When asked about the need for another committee to conduct the same study, which was done by MSEDCL in the past on the directives of the MERC through an expert committee of IIT Bombay, Khullar said, "The discom has not submitted the report yet. Nonetheless, we felt that there is a need to commission a study directly under the aegis of the MERC."