STRENGTHENING INFRASTRUCTURE: POWER SECTOR REFORMS- SOME VIABLE PROPOSALS FOR KERALA

It goes without saying that the problems confronting the State Electricity Boards (SEBs) in India are just internal to them, and hence what the system requires is not any market-oriented restructuring, but an essence-specific reform that can remove the impediments that stand in the way of the SEBs’ improved performance. It is in this light that we propose some viable measures of reform meant for the Kerala power sector, covering all the stages of its functioning. Since the problems haunting the power sector start from the very first stage of capacity expansion planning itself, we suggest, to start with, a simple method of electricity demand projection for Kerala and discuss its implications. Then we discuss in detail some viable measures of reform for the Kerala power sector for its efficient functioning in the execution of expansion plans and operational performance.