In a year hit by a pandemic, job losses and pay cuts, people will now have to shell out more for electricity. In a delayed development, the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) has approved revision of electricity tariff for all the Electricity Supply Companies (ESCOMs) with an average increase by 40 paise per unit considering increase in demand and energy charges, with an average increase of 5.4%.
The only relief for consumers is that the new tariff comes into effect not retrospectively from April, but for the electricity consumed from the first meter reading date falling on or after November 1.
The order was pronounced on Wednesday virtually and is applicable for the ongoing financial year.
A press release from the KERC said that the increase in tariff was necessitated due to a year-on-year increase in the cost of power purchase and procurement of energy from new thermal and renewable energy sources. “The input costs towards operation and maintenance and borrowings for capital expenditure are also increasing year on year. Hence, in order to enable the ESCOMs to carry on their business of supplying electricity which is a basic need of the society, the increase in the tariff has become inevitable,” the Commission has said.
Last year, the Commission had allowed a 33 paise per unit increase across all Escoms against the hikes they had sought, ranging from ₹1 to ₹1.67 per unit.
