Telangana Sarpanches Oppose Plan to Use Rs 1,700 Crore Grants for Power Dues

Gram panchayats across Telangana are facing a severe financial squeeze as state authorities move to divert 15th Finance Commission funds to clear nearly Rs 1,700 crore in outstanding electricity dues. The Panchayat Raj Department has instructed village secretaries to utilize available Central grants through the digital key system to settle arrears owed to power distribution companies, drawing sharp opposition from local representatives.

The massive power arrears have accumulated across the state's 12,760 gram panchayats, driven by electricity consumed for street lighting, drinking water supply schemes, Palle Prakruthi Vanams, nurseries, and public sports grounds. Depending on their size, individual villages incur monthly electricity charges ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 30,000.

According to officials, electricity bills were cleared on a regular basis during the previous BRS government. However, unpaid balances began mounting after the Congress administration assumed office, exacerbated by delays in conducting sarpanch elections, general fund shortages, and delayed releases of Central Finance Commission grants.

With power distribution companies pressing for immediate recovery, the Panchayat Raj Department directed village secretaries to clear the bills immediately or face departmental action. The directive has placed secretaries in a tight spot between administrative warnings, power utility demands, and pushback from elected officials. In several districts, sarpanches are actively preventing secretaries from withdrawing Central funds.

Newly elected sarpanches argued that the 15th Finance Commission grants were specifically earmarked for vital rural infrastructure, including drinking water supply, sanitation, internal roads, drainage systems, and village parks. Diverting these funds to cover past electricity bills, they warned, would leave local bodies with no financial resources to carry out basic developmental works.

Panchayat Raj officials defended the decision, maintaining that electricity expenditure for public utilities falls within permissible Finance Commission uses. Officials stressed that clearing arrears is urgent to sustain power for drinking water supply amid water distress brought on by poor rainfall and El Nino.