Govt hands over electricity bill collection to Adani Group

Hyderabad: The State government has decided to hand over the responsibility of collecting electricity bills in Hyderabad’s Old City to the private company Adani Group.

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy revealed this decision during an informal interaction with media representatives on the sidelines of his visit to Delhi. The Chief Minister cited that only 60% of the electricity bills charged in the Old City are being received, prompting the move to hand over the collection of electricity bills to the Adani Group as part of a pilot project.

Additionally, the Adani Group has been entrusted with the task of installing underground electric lines in the Old City. The Chief Minister defended this decision by stating that, unlike Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his government is not handing over government-run institutions to private companies. Instead, his government has signed several investment agreements with the Adani Group, including in the power sector. Revanth Reddy clarified that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi never opposed investment agreements with the Adani Group and emphasised that his government will make decisions in the best interest of the state. He criticised previous media reports suggesting that the Congress government is attempting to privatise the electricity sector in the state. According to reports, the Adani Group would handle not only the collection of electricity bills but also electricity management, billing, and maintenance under the pilot project. If successful, the Adani Group might extend these responsibilities to other areas of Hyderabad and eventually across the state.