Household's access to and affordability of Electrcity during Reforms: A comparative study of Orissa and West Bengal

Using India’s National Sample Survey data on consumption expenditure by households this paper examines how access to affordability of electricity services have fared under power sector reform programme that was pursued in the of State Orissa (India). To draw a comparative picture of Orissa with a state which did not follow the path of World Bank inspired restructuring of the power sector we use similar data for West Bengal (a proximate State to Orissa). Paper finds that increment in the access to electricity for the bottom 60 percent of the population has remained almost stagnant and the burden of electricity expenditure on the poor households has increased significantly. Compared to west Bengal much larger increase in the expenditure on electricity in Orissa by households having access to electricity clearly signifies that electricity reforms have led to considerable loss in the in consumers’ welfare. Paper uses concentration ratio method to elicit findings.