RBI debits ₹714 cr from J’khand’s account for DVC dues, govt fumes

Deduction was made two days ago on the recommendation of Ministry of Power; govt contemplates moving court

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has debited ₹714 crore from Jharkhand’s account maintained with the central bank against dues of stateowned power discom on Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC), even as the state government has opted out of the tripartite agreement under which the money has been deducted.

Jharkhand chief secretary Sukhdev Singh confirmed the development on Wednesday. The deduction was made two days ago on the recommendation of the Ministry of Power.

Union power secretary Sanjiv Nandan Sahai on January 6 had written to RBI governor Shaktikanta Das, detailing power purchase agreements reached between Jharkhand and DVC on March 31, 2015 and August 23, 2017, and the total outstanding dues of Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (JBVNL) owed to DVC amounting to ₹4,949.56 crore, of which ₹3,558.68 crore was undisputed. He said Jharkhand was never regular in its payment and directed to deduct ₹714 crore from the state’s account maintained by the RBI.

The DVC had also reminded JBVNL about its pending dues on January 7. The DVC chief engineer (commercial) in his letter had mentioned that JBVNL purchased power to the tune of ₹1,960.20 crore from DVC from January 2020 to December 2020 and paid ₹893.18 crore, resulting in a whopping amount of dues, that include the current outstanding bill of ₹1,067.02 crore.

It was the second deduction from the state’s account following the approval of MoP as per the tripartite agreement reached on April 24, 2017. Earlier, ₹1,417 crore was debited in October 2020 and credited to DVC’s account.The amount was debited from the consolidated fund account of the state maintained by RBI despite Jharkhand’s exit from the tripartite agreement.

RANCHI: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has debited ₹714 crore from Jharkhand’s account maintained with the central bank against dues of stateowned power discom on Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC), even as the state government has opted out of the tripartite agreement under which the money has been deducted.

Jharkhand chief secretary Sukhdev Singh confirmed the development on Wednesday. The deduction was made two days ago on the recommendation of the Ministry of Power (MoP).

Union power secretary Sanjiv Nandan Sahai on January 6 had written to RBI governor Shaktikanta Das, detailing power purchase agreements reached between Jharkhand and DVC on March 31, 2015 and August 23, 2017 and the total outstanding dues of Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (JBVNL) on DVC amounting to ₹4,949.56 crore, of which ₹3,558.68 crore was undisputed. He said Jharkhand was never regular in its payment and directed to deduct ₹714 crore from the state’s account maintained by the RBI.

The DVC had also reminded JBVNL about its pending dues on January 7. The DVC chief engineer (commercial) in his letter had mentioned that JBVNL purchased power to the tune of ₹1,960.20 crore from DVC from January 2020 to December 2020 and paid ₹893.18 crore, resulting in a whopping amount of dues, that include the current outstanding bill of ₹1,067.02 crore.

It was the second deduction from the state’s account following the approval of MoP as per the tripartite agreement reached on April 24, 2017. Earlier, ₹1,417 crore was debited in October 2020 and credited to DVC’s account.

The amount was debited from the consolidated fund account of the state maintained by RBI despite Jharkhand’s exit from the tripartite agreement, vis-àvis the compulsion of payment security mechanism.

Energy secretary of Jharkhand cum JBVNL managing director Avinash Kumar said, “The amount should not have been deducted after Jharkhand opted out of the agreement. The government will look into the matter and may seek legal opinion.” Finance minister Rameshwar Oraon said the state government had informed the centre and RBI about the decision of exiting the tripartite agreement. He said the government would approach the apex court with an appeal.

The amount should not have been deducted after J’khand opted out of the agreement. AVINASH KUMAR , state energy secretary