Furious over PSPCL’s 8% power hike proposal, bizmen call for meeting

Angered by the proposal mooted by Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to hike the power charges for by 8%, Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal (PPBM) said it will gherao the houses of ministers and MLAs of state if the PSPCL does not withdraws its proposal. The association has also called for meeting in Ludhiana on January 10.

In its annual revenue requirement (ARR) petition filed before Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) recently, PSPCL has sought a hike in power charges to compensate for the shortfall in its revenues of current year.

Sunil Mehra, state general secretary of PPBM, said, “Because of lockdown, trade and industry have not been able to function to their full capacity since April. PSPCL has been levying fixed charges and putting burden on us under one pretext or another and even then its coffers are empty and its ready with yet another hike, that too a 8% hike. What is more shocking that state government is silently watching PSPCL commit this atrocity on us.

We have had enough of this and we have now decided that if PSPCL does not withdraws its proposal to hike power tariff within next two weeks we will start organising protests against MLAs and ministers of the ruling party.”