It is learnt that Goa is perhaps the only state in the country that is persisting with an ‘Electricity Department’ while most other states in the country have switched over to either ‘Electricity Board’ or ‘Electricity Corporation’. There are subtle differences between a government corporation and the department in regard to ownership, administration and finances. Public corporations are separate legal entities. They are established by the government. However they operate independently of the government.
Departmental undertakings are managed by the government department to which they belong. The government departments are fully owned by the Government which manages it. The finances are met by budgetary support. There is no autonomy in their functioning. On the other hand the government-owned corporations are autonomous and there is some degree of freedom in the day to day functioning of their administrations.
A corporation is generally meant to produce revenue whereas departments are mostly spending units of the government. It is pertinent to note that the Kadamba Transport Corporation Ltd. is a state transport undertaking of Goa. The Goa State Horticultural Corporation is a Government of Goa undertaking with the main objectives to promote and undertake the cultivation of all types of horticultural and plantation crops. So likewise why not have a ‘Goa State Electricity Corporation’?
