Privatisation

Comprehensive power sector reforms, particularly in the transmission and distribution segments, have been discussed at least since 1993 when a Committee of the National Development Council comprising six chief ministers was set up. Conferences of chief ministers/power ministers were held in 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2001. However, in spite of the hardy ritual of conferences and resolutions without any seriousness of purpose - just to give the appearance of progress where there is in fact none - there is no light at the end of the tunnel. In fact the tunnel seems to get darker and longer each year.

Privatisation is very much the flavour of the day. Many enthusiasts of privatisation seem to believe that a shift from public to private ownership will automatically make for improved performance. Yet there is little in economic theory or the empirical evidence on privatisation that lends support to such a simplistic belief. The evidence on the impact of privatisation is by no means unmixed. In particular, in less developed countries, where law enforcement and corporate governance tend to be weak, private ownership does not necessarily make for better performance. It is possible, based on the research on privatisation, to draw some tentative conclusions for privatisation policy in a context such as ours.

What has come to be known as the Convergence Bill, introduced in parliament in the monsoon session, is a great advance on previous enactments for setting up the TRAI and the TDSAT. There are nevertheless a number of serious flaws, omissions and undesirable provisions in the bill which need rectification. A critical analysis.

Private organisations contacted by the Gujarat government to rebuild houses in earthquake-affected Kutch are having to beat a dejected retreat. On one hand, housing contractors merely wanted to reap a quick turnover, on the other, their understanding of the villages they sought to rebuild did not take into account the differing wants of the people and the caste-class divisions among them.