Five more states implement reforms, earn more borrowing capacity

According to the Ministry of Finance, five more states, namely, Bihar, Goa, Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand, have become eligible for reform-linked borrowings in the power sector. The borrowing cap is linked to the power sector reforms undertaken by states, such as meeting the target of reduction in aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses, reducing the average cost of supply and average revenue realisation (ACS-ARR) gap, or undertaking direct benefit transfer (DBT) of electricity to farmers. These five states have either reduced AT&C losses or met the ACS-ARR gap target. Prior to this, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh had become eligible for additional borrowing by undertaking DBT of electricity to farmers. So far, these seven states have been permitted additional borrowings of Rs 50.32 billion.