SHILLONG, April 29 - The Meghalaya government on Monday decided to stand guarantee for Rs 650 crore worth of bond floated by the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeCL) to pay off some of its debt.
The decision was taken by the Cabinet to give relief to consumers from hours of load-shedding. Minister in-charge of Power James Sangma said consumers might get some relief in the coming days from the load-shedding.
Out of the capital raised from the market through the bond, MeCL would write off some of its �high-interest bearing loans� taken from the Power Finance Corporation and also pay some of its debt to the North Eastern Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO).
The Central public sector company has regulated power supply to the State until previous dues were cleared, leading to load-shedding.
�We will pay as much as possible to NEEPCO. It is a big challenge for us,� Sangma added. MeCL owes Rs 550 crore to NEEPCO as power supply dues. The Minister said the government was trying to restructure the MeCL, which is reeling under severe financial crunch. He informed that the government was studying the outcome of the MoUs signed between different franchises for input-based distribution of power. Sangma said that based on the report, a decision on new franchises would be taken.
