``We are fully committed to bring about comprehensive reforms in the power sector'' says Chandrabhan, power minister. Speaking to The Financial Express, he said separate profit centres would be established to promote productivity and efficiency. The government had decided to introduce the Rajasthan Power Sector Reform Bill in the next session of the Vidhan Sabha.The minister said that the institutional changes required to implement the reform process were already under implementation.

RSEB in its present form will cease to exist once the reforms are carried out in toto. In fact, the board has run into serious financial problems withits cash losses continue to mounting. According to the minister, the reforms and the split of RSEB would go a long way in restoring the health of the power sector in the state.

RSEB has a total of 356 mw of power available to it but the growing energy needs are being met through energy purchases from outside. ``The state's power scenario is unlikely to improve in the next few years and shortages will continue till the end of the Tenth Five Year Plan'' says the minister. The shortages are to the tune of around 40 per cent.

For meeting the current power shortages, the installed capacity has got to be raised by about 5000 mw at an estimated cost of Rs 20,000 crore. ``The State will not be able to support such a programme without mobilising private investment in a big way''.

However, the government's efforts to attract investment for power generation in the private sector have misfired with not a single financial closure having been achieved. It was in 1991 that the then government of BS Shekhawat haddecided to go in for power generation in the private sector only. If Rajasthan is facing the power problems today, it is due to the wrong policies of the previous government, says the minister.

The government had issued a large number of letters of intent for the liquid fuel based power projects of smaller capacity ranging from 50 mw to 166 mw of power int he private sector. PPAs had also been signed for 702 naphtha based and 500 mw lignite based power projects in Rajasthan. These two projects had also got the techno-economic clearance from CEA.

``There has virtually been no progress in regard to implementation of these projects'' says the Minister. The government had now decided to put in the state sector 2X250 mw thermal power plant at Suratgarh.

The minister said that on every Kwh of energy sold by RSEB it had to incur a loss of 54 paise. Last year RSEB's revenue deficit was Rs 944 crore and it will rise to Rs 1250 crore during this year.