“By putting off a cost reflective tariff and extending subsidies, we may seem to help the consumer, but what we are actually doing is bleeding the State electricity boards and eventually burdening the consumer with surcharge after the losses become untenable,” said an official of the power department explaining why reforms in the power sector must begin with a realistic power tariff, curtailing losses and replacing short-term sops with long-term schemes.

Dissecting the causes for the grid collapse that left the city powerless on Monday and Tuesday, officials of the power distribution companies as well as the government’s power department were unanimous that the State electricity boards have been pushed to withdraw spending on system up-gradation because of their poor financial condition.