Now Reading: Haryana blocks parallel power licence for Gurugram, Nuh districts
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Haryana blocks parallel power licence for Gurugram, Nuh districts
The Story in Brief
The Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) has halted a 25-year parallel distribution licence it granted on 19 October to Eleven Power Private Limited for Gurugram and Nuh districts, after the state government directed on 26 October that no such licence be created or operationalised anywhere in Haryana.
The state cited consumer interest, financial implications for the incumbent utility DHBVNL and the risk of stranded assets. HERC rejected Eleven Power’s request for a hearing, stating it must follow government policy directions under Section 108 of the Electricity Act, 2003. Power department employees, who had gone on strike over the licence, called off their action on 23 October after the government agreed to invoke Section 108.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The Economic Times reported JM Financial’s bullish case for parallel licensing before the Haryana government reversed the very licence the brokerage had cited. Business Line and New Indian Express both led with HERC halting the Eleven Power licence on government directive, but Business Line focused on regulatory procedure and the state’s financial and consumer-interest arguments, while New Indian Express gave more space to the employees’ strike and the All India Power Engineers Federation’s celebration of the order as a ‘historic victory’. The uniform coverage is the reversal itself: every outlet confirms the state government invoked Section 108 to block a licence HERC had already granted. The balanced reading is that parallel licensing remains a live policy debate, but the immediate test is whether the state’s direction holds in court or through the winter session’s Electricity (Amendment) Bill.
Coverage: 3 sources, 3 neutral
Sources (3): economictimes.indiatimes.com (neutral report), thehindubusinessline.com (neutral report), newindianexpress.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
