The power to reform: Tariffs a key issue for revival of gencos, discoms

The impact of the latest, the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, or RDSS, launched in 2022, has been less than optimum

Union Power Minister M L Khattar’s advice to power companies, including generating and distribution companies (discoms), to list on stock markets would have been persuasive if these entities had subjected themselves to the rigours of the market. But India’s power market has been uniquely distorted by politically motivated tariff policies that affect the financial viability of state-run discoms. Indeed, Mr Khattar noted that discoms had racked up a cumulative debt of Rs 6.84 trillion and accumulated losses of Rs 6.46 trillion. These staggering numbers partly reflected the combined impact of a record demand in 2023-24, and a rising cost of