Power consumers in Uttar Pradesh may have to bear another round of tariff hike before the lok Sabha election as the UP Power Corporation limited has demanded an average 10 per cent rise in the electricity rates after private companies increased their price.
According to the Annual Revenue Requirement (ARR) note submitted recently by the companies to the UP Power Regularity Authority for the financial year 2014-15, they have demanded an average 10 per cent hike in power tariff, including 15 per cent for domestic consumers, 6 per cent for commercial connections and 5 per cent for the industrial sector.
The companies have contended that they are purchasing power at the rate of Rs 6.06 per unit from Reliance and Rs 7.75 per unit from Bajaj Hindustan, hence they need an additional revenue to cover up the losses.
The UP Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad has criticised the move to hike the power tariff. Its chairman, Awadhesh Kumar Verma, said here that the Samajwadi Party Government had already hiked the power tariff twice in its 18-month rule and another hike will be opposed by the people.
“The Akhilesh Yadav Government should take a lesson from the Delhi assembly election where Aam Aadmi Party got support of the people only due to (Chief Minister) Sheila Dixit’s hobnobbing with the private power companies. The people in UP will also teach the SP a lesson if its Government tries to hike power tariff again,” he said.