BRS urges ERC to reject power tariff hike proposal
Speaking to reporters at Telangana Bhavan, Rama Rao described the nine proposals put forth by the discoms as highly detrimental to both domestic and industrial consumers. He highlighted that the discoms plan to raise fixed charges for households consuming more than 300 units per month from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. "This isn’t just a tariff hike; it will push ordinary families into financial distress due to rising power consumption," he warned.
Hyderabad: The Bharat Rashtra Samithi on Monday strongly opposed proposals of power distribution companies (discoms) to hike the power tariff and related charges, which could impose a burden of Rs.18,500 crore on the people of Telangana. A BRS delegation led by party working president KT Rama Rao and former Energy Minister G Jagadish Reddy submitted a representation to the Telangana State Electricity Regulatory Commission (TSERC) to reject the nine proposals submitted by the discoms.
Speaking to mediapersons at Telangana Bhavan here, Rama Rao said the nine nine proposals made by the discoms were highly dangerous for both domestic and industrial consumers. The discoms proposed to increase fixed charges for households consuming more than 300 units per month, from Rs.10 to Rs.50. “This is not just a tariff hike; this move will push ordinary families into financial distress, due to increasing power consumption,” he cautioned.
The former Minister also found fault with the proposal to group all industries under a single category, arguing that this move was unprecedented and could severely affect Telangana’s industrial sector. He feared that it would spell doom for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), powerlooms and other industries. He pointed out that Telangana’s industrial sector was already under strain due to ill-conceived policies of the Congress government.
“Even Foxconn, a global tech giant, has excluded Telangana from its expansion plans, instead choosing States like Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. This is a direct consequence of misguided policies,” he noted, adding that several industries had already begun to shift operations out of Telangana since the Congress administration took office.
Rama Rao also pointed at the State government’s silence on the Centre’s proposal to install meters for agricultural pumps, causing unnecessary worry among farmers who were already struggling with unreliable power supply. He also contrasted the current situation with the tenure of former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, under whom similar proposals for tariff hikes were rejected.
“When the discoms sought a hike in True-Up charges amounting to Rs 1,200 crore, the former Chief Minister ensured that people were not burdened financially and instead, chose to absorb the cost,” he recalled.
Under Chandrashekhar Rao’s leadership, Telangana saw significant progress in the power sector, including free electricity to farmers and 24-hour supply to households, he said, adding that the installed power capacity of Telangana rose from 7,000 MW to 24,000 MW. The proposed tariff hikes would reverse the progress made under the previous BRS government, he said, urging the ERC chairman to reject the arbitrary tariff hike, calling it a reckless decision that would derail Telangana’s growth.
With the ERC’s public hearing slated for October 23, he said the BRS would participate in the hearing and expose the government’s conspiracies. “We will present our case strongly at the hearing, standing firmly against the government’s misguided policies,” he affirmed.
