TRIVANDRUM, 1 October — An all-party meeting convened by Kerala Chief Minister A.K. Antony failed to take any decision to save the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), which is making a loss of Rs1.84 billion a month, with the opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) vehemently opposing a hike in the power tariffs. The Marxist-led LDF made it clear that it was opposed to any move to tax the consumers to bail out the ailing KSEB, the government-owned sole distributor of power that produces highest quantity of cheap hydropower in India. Though the KSEB produces power at its hydro-projects at a cost less than 20 paise per unit, it charges the consumers in the range of Rs1 to Rs6. The board’s loss was blamed on rampant power thefts and gross mismanagement.
Meet on Kerala power crisis fails



