State Government gears up to secure BBMB energy arrears pending for 14 years

SHIMLA 28 July, 2025

• Distinguished battery of lawyers to represent the case before SC

After securing a historic victory in the JSW energy case from the Supreme Court of India, the present state government is now committed to assertively pursue its long pending claims for energy arrears from the BBMB projects. The case is listed for hearing before a new bench comprising of Justice J.K Maheshwari and Justice Vijay Bishnoi on 29 July, 2025.
A Spokesman of the state government said here today that the present government under the leadership of Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has been consistently making earnest and sustainable efforts to secure the rightful energy arrears due from all commissioned BBMB projects. The State Government is fighting for its rights for more than 14 years and these arrears are claimed at a rate of 7.19 percent with effect from November, 1966 or from date of commissioning of subsequent projects.
To vigorously pursue this long standing claim, he said, that the state government has engaged distinguished battery of senior Advocates comprising of Kapil Sibal, Parag Tripathi and J.S Attri along-with Advocate General of Himachal Pradesh Anup Rattan and Additional Advocate General Vaibhav Shrivastva at New Delhi to represent the State before the Supreme Court.
He said that following the historic verdict of Apex Court on 27th September, 2011, the Ministry of Power directed BBMB to begin actual delivery of power to Himachal Pradesh at 7.19 percent from 1st November, 2011 onwards. In compliance the Ministry also prepared and submitted a detailed statement of energy arrears from the period of November 1966 to October 2011 to the Supreme Court. According to the statement, the State is entitled to 13066 Million Units of power from BBMB projects, with arrears due from Punjab and Haryana in the ratio of 60:40. Despite the Supreme Court’s clear directions, the matter remained pending for over 14 years.
The Spokesperson further said that despite the Apex Court’s earlier decision, there has been no conclusive presentation regarding the methodology for the payment of arrears due to the State of Himachal Pradesh by the Attorney General for India & Ministry of Power. As a result, the case has seen repeated delays, often deferred on one or other technical or procedural grounds.
He said that the State Government remains resolute in its commitment to secure what is rightly due to the State and will leave no stone unturned in this pursuit.