India News | Minister Raut Blames Fadnavis Govt for MSEDCL Dues of over Rs 73k Cr

Mumbai, Sep 14 (PTI) Maharashtra Energy Minister Nitin Raut on Tuesday said state-run MSEDCL was staring at outstanding dues of Rs 73,879 crore due to the inefficiency of the previous Devendra Fadnavis government.

Also Read | Joe Cury; Against ALL Odds, From Homeless & Suicidal to $18MM in Sales.

The energy department was with the BJP when it was ruling the state between 2014 and 2019 in alliance with the Shiv Sena.

Also Read | AI and Machine Learning Can Prevent Fraud Attacks, Says Cupid Chan.

Raut said the state government was also considering further division of MSEDCL into four companies to turn it into a profitable entity, a model successfully implemented by neighbouring Gujarat, incidentally a BJP-ruled state.

Speaking to reporters after making a presentation to the state cabinet on outstanding dues, customer base and measures being taken to fix leakages, Raut said the outstanding amount in 2014-15 was Rs 23,224 crore, which steadily increased due to the inefficiency of the then state government to reach 71,243 crore in March 31 this year and 73,879 crore as on July.

He said recovery of dues was challenging post floods and cyclone in the state, while the cross-subsidy factor was already high at Rs 12,762 and can't be increased further.

"The loan on Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited is Rs 45,440 crore. It is worrisome. A consultancy firm has been hired to fix the loopholes as the state utility is the second largest in Asia. Their report will be tabled before the cabinet," he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)