The issue is clearly in the domain of the states. Recognising this, the ordinance provides for a central electricity regulation commission, complemented by state commissions. But what if one or the other state does not set up an electricity regulation commission? (Bihar till today has not held panchayat elections, defying a constitutional requirement!) The only stick available to the centre is deduction from central plan transfers to the states. This measure was tried under the Congress regime but was allowed to lapse after brief use. Today, it will be difficult to neutrally wield the stick against both state governments that support the BJP-coalition and those which do not.

Ordinances, even if ratified by parliament, will hardlywork in a federal democratic structure. Realising this, the Deve Gowda government had convened a meeting of chief ministers and framed certain guidelines to tackle the power tariff problem. These should have been taken as the basis for consideration by the the National Development Council. (After all, NDC is the body for sorting out federal issues). Judging by recent experience, the problem is that all states do not act in unison: Haryana raised the power tariff to its political embarrassment; neighbouring Punjab zeroed the power tariff for agriculture. Can the latest power ordinance change this in a situation where various constituents of the central government are gunning for toppling state governments in Tamil Nadu, Bihar and Haryana?

The power ordinance is technically unclear. It stipulates that power tariff for agriculture should be on par with other sectors in three years. But other sectors include industry which pays more than the cost of power. Other sectors also include power to domesticconsumers: this tariff is targeted to be 50 per cent of cost. Which tariff will power to agriculture be on par with? Besides, it is one thing to say NTPC dues must be cleared. The centre can enforce this (but if the states remain, by and large, recalcitrant, NPTC will have to back down power generation). It is quite another to get a harmonious power tariff structure across the states. Ordinances are no substitute for consensus.