Imphal: Manipur's state-run power utility is bleeding cash. A fresh Comptroller and Auditor General of India report details how the Manipur State Power Distribution Company Limited lost control over its finances and infrastructure. Consumer arrears ballooned from Rs 515.51 crore in 2018-19 to Rs 691.09 crore by February 2025. Managers ignored their own rules. They failed to disconnect deadbeat accounts despite mandatory 15-day warning periods. Six sampled divisions alone held Rs 24 crore in unpaid High Tension bills.
The company paid a steep price for its inaction. Cash flow problems forced the utility to miss wholesale bills, triggering massive late fees. MSPDCL paid Rs 14 crore to the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited for power delivered between 2017 and 2021. Of that total, Rs 10.33 crore went toward late-payment surcharges alone. Investigators also uncovered suspected theft at the Yairipok Sub Division. Between January 2021 and January 2024, staff failed to deposit or account for Rs 54.63 lakh in cash collections.
Technical failures hampered the books. The company missed its goal for total consumer metering, leaving 65,587 out of 560,238 accounts unmetered. Staff relied on a retired billing formula for these users, hiding true consumption. Infrastructure gaps prevent the utility from tracking energy losses. By March 2024, only 57 percent of 11-kV feeders and 15 percent of Distribution Transformers had working meters. The company also failed to migrate 75,612 prepaid users to a web-based billing system. This glitch blocked automatic arrears collection.
Power supply is failing. Rotational load shedding hit the state on September 16, 2026, as officials scrambled to bridge a 90 MW supply deficit. The audit states: "MSPDCL is facing mounting financial and operational pressures, with rising consumer arrears, suspected misappropriation, incomplete metering and infrastructure gaps affecting its ability to manage power supply."
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