The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : KERC announces different tariffs for urban, rural areas

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 28, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

KERC announces different tariffs for urban, rural areas

Staff Reporter

Uniform upward revision in power tariff ruled out; `creamy layer' category abolished

NEW ORDER: H.S. Subramanya (left), member, K.P. Pandey, Chairman, and S.D. Ukkali, member of the KERC respectively, at the announcement of the power tariff order in Bangalore on Tuesday. — Photo: K. Gopinathan

BANGALORE: The Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) has ruled against any uniform upward revision in power tariff and ushered in a new system of tariffs for urban and rural areas. It has also abolished "creamy layer" among irrigation pumpset owners who were being made to pay a higher tariff.

Pronouncing its orders here on Tuesday on the demand for upward revision of power tariff from Karnataka Power Transmission Commission Limited and the electricity supply companies for an average 11 per cent increase in electricity tariff, the KERC has laid emphasis on rationalisation of tariff besides introducing the urban-rural divide.

The KERC Chairman, K.P. Pandey, told presspersons that the commission has not deviated from the previous orders on upward revision of tariff and had not allowed to pass through the additional fixed cost of Tannirbhavi project amounting to Rs. 145 crores, the interest on power purchase cost amounting to Rs. 253.17 crores and the cost of free lighting and bonus to employees amounting to Rs. 24.6 crores.

The average cost of supply as determined by the commission in the Tariff Order 2003 was Rs. 3.41 per unit, and in the Tariff Amendment Order issued on December 15, 2003, it was pegged at Rs. 3.62.

Today's order has put it at Rs. 3.56 per unit. As a consequence, the commission has said there is no case for uniform upward revision of tariff.

Instead, it has rationalised tariffs by setting one tariff for urban centres and a slightly lower tariff for rural areas dividing them into three categories each of LT and HT consumers. The commission has felt that consumers in Bangalore and other cities who are enjoying comparatively better quality of power supply need to pay a little more as compared with the consumers elsewhere.

For Bhagya Jyothi and Kutir Jyothi schemes, as the Government has committed itself to providing free power up to 18 units per month, the electricity supply companies shall raise a consolidated bill on the Government at Rs. 3.55 per unit.

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