State-owned discom raises tariff, urban consumers hit

Ranchi: Urban and rural domestic consumers, drawing power from Jharkhand Bjli Vitaran Nigam Ltd (JBVNL), the state-owned power discom, will have to pay Re .0.05 more for every unit of power consumed by them, according to a new power tariff announced by the Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission (JSERC) on Thursday.
However, the energy rates for domestic urban consumers are the highest, compared to all other categories of consumers.
The new tariff will be applicable from June 1.
“JBVNL had, in its petition, prayed that the power tariff, which had remained unchanged since the past 3 years, be hiked by at least 17%. However, keeping the interests of consumers, we have allowed an increase of 6.50%,” Justice Amitav Kumar Gupta, chairman, JSERC, said while announcing the new tariff at the commission’s office at Harmu in Ranchi.
The JSERC chairman pointed out that the tariff announced on Thursday are exclusive of the subsidies that are currently being allowed by the state government.
According to the new tariff order, domestic rural consumers who were being charged at Rs 5.75 per unit will now have to pay Rs 5.80 per unit. Fixed charges however, have been hiked from Rs 20 to Rs 50 per month.
Urban domestic consumers who have been paying at the rate of Rs 6.25 per unit will have to pay Rs 6.30 per unit. Fixed charges have been hiked from the present Rs 75 per month to Rs 100 a month.
Rural commercial units will be charged at the new rate of Rs 5.80 per KW, up from the present Rs 5.75 per KW, though fixed charges have been doubled from Rs50 per KW per month to Rs 100 a month.
For urban commercial units, power tariff has been hiked from Rs 6 per KW to Rs 6.15 per KW. Fixed charges have been hiked from the present Rs 100 per KW per month to Rs 150 per KW per month.
Industrial units will now be required to pay Re 0.15 more for every unit consumed. Industries under the low-tension industrial supply category, which have been paying at the rate of Rs 5.75 per KVAh (kilo watt hour) along with a fixed charge of Rs 100 per KVA per month, will henceforth be charged at Rs 5.90 per KVAh and a fixed charge of Rs 150 per month.
Industries under the high-tension industrial supply category will now be charged at Rs 5.65 per KVAh, up from the previous Rs 5.50 per KVAh. Fixed charges too have been hiked from the present Rs 350 per KVA per month to Rs 400 per KVA per month.
Per unit rates for irrigation and agriculture have been left unchanged at Rs 5 per KWH though monthly fixed charge has been doubled from the present Rs 20 per HP to Rs 40 per HP.
JSERC, in its tariff order, said consumers paying their entire power bills, either through online or digital mode, by the due date, would be entitled to a rebate of 1% subject to a maximum of Rs 250.
According to the order, consumers switching to pre-paid metering would be entitled to a rebate of 3% of the billed amount along with a full refund of the security deposit earlier paid by the consumer.
The refunds shall be made within one month from the date of installation of prepaid meters, the tariff order said. “In case the consumers are not served the monthly energy bills for two consecutive months, a rebate of 1% every month, subject to a maximum of 3% on the billed amount, will be allowed,” the JSERC order added.