By IANS,
Kozhikode : Kerala is not in favour of splitting the state electricity board into three companies as desired by the central government, Electricity Minister A.K. Balan said here Sunday.
The state government intends to restructure the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) into a company in the public sector that will take care of generation, transmission and distribution, Balan told reporters.
“In section 131 of the Electricity Act 2003, it is said that the board can be made into a company or companies,” the minister said.
According to him, the creation of three companies could lead to privatisation of the energy sector.
“At present, Kerala is one of the states which is managing its energy sector in the most efficient manner. We have power cuts only for half-an-hour a day while in many other states this is not the case,” Balan said.
The minister said the state intended to promote wind energy. “We will follow a liberal approach in this matter.”
He said a decision on imposing power cuts during the day would be taken after assessing the northeast monsoon. If the monsoon fails, daytime power cuts may become necessary, he added.