When data quality trips power reforms

For things to change on the ground, wrong reporting of numbers needs to be severely penalised

There have been a slew of steps in recent times to improve penetration and quality of electricity supply, and the financial health of utilities, particularly the distribution companies (discoms). However, the achievement on the ground has been far short of the targets envisaged, with timelines getting shifted and targets modified in many cases.

The root cause of such failures? The baseline data used to devise interventions. Aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) loss is the primary data source to assess the performance of discoms. All schemes — such as, the Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (R-APDRP), Integrated Power Development Scheme