Speaking to Express Newsline, she said: ``Kumaramanglam, in his letter, mentions that there is a weak transmission and distribution system, which will cause frequent blackouts. Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB) owes Rs 6,000 crore to the Central government. And he goes on. I want to say that my month-old government cannot be held responsible for the pending debt and weak power transmission. We have inherited this appalling power system from the earlier BJP government. And my government needs some time to come out of this mess. I appreciate his (Kumaramanglam's) timely warning, he should also understand that we don't have a magic wand,'' Dikshit said.

Kumaramanglam's letter in itself is a white paper on the BJP's poor handling of power situation, she added. ``In the last five years not an iota of power has been added for the city in terms of generation. Four of the six gas turbines at the Indraprastha Power Station have collapsed. What we are facing here are the consequences of the BJP government's negligence,'' she added.

Predicting worse times, she said, ``We know that the summer would be difficult. And we are trying to set right as many things as possible. We are also trying to minimise the transmission and distribution losses and improve revenue collection,'' she said.

On the White Paper on the power situation, that is set to come out on January 15, she said, ``It would be ready in a couple of days and soon after a regulatory body would be set up to monitor the power situation''.

Stressing on the need for time, she said, ``I am not rushing into solutions. I am looking for long-term strategies. One such step is to open up meters, everyone who uses power has to pay for it. The other solution is to improve generation by finishing the work on Bawana, Narela and Pragati Maidan power stations.''

But Dikshit's plans may get a jolt, if Kumaramanglam is to be taken seriously. In his letter, he had stated that no new investment was possible for the enhancing power situation in the city as it was facing a tremendous backlog of arrears and losses.

Despite this, Dikshit believes that the power projects could be completed by improving the revenue collection by the Delhi Vidyut Board.

Kumaramangalam had also insisted that the Board had to be reconstituted at the earliest. ``It will be done after the White Paper comes out in a few days,'' she said. Kumaramangalam had sought appointment of a regulator under the provisions of Electricity Regulatory Commissions Act, 1998, and restructuring of the Board. The Board owes more than Rs 1,500 crore to the National Thermal Power Corporation and Powergrid, and around Rs 6,000 crore to the Central government. The DVB recovers only Rs 2,000 crore, and it is unlikely that the DVB has the capacity to clear its dues.