AAP effect: Haryana cuts power tariff

 Pradeep Sharma
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 31
The New Year has brought cheer to residents of Haryana. From January 1, they will pay Rs 200 less on their bi-monthly bills up to 1,600 units. “An amount equal to the relief given to the consumers would be paid by the government to the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) and the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) from the state budget,” Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said here tonight.

Hooda also announced that there would be no increase in electricity tariff for the next financial year (2014-15) in the state. “The Discoms will file the Annual Revenue Requirement (ARR) petition before the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission to seek no power hike,” he said.

The decision, which has been taken ahead of the forthcoming parliamentary and assembly elections and apparently to contain the growing influence of the Aam Aadmi Party, is expected to benefit nearly 40 lakh small consumers.

In fact, recently there have been widespread protests across state against “inflated” bills.

Observers felt the populist decision would affect the financial restructuring plan of the discoms recently announced by the central government.

Only recently, the Hooda government accepted the Centre's bailout package for discoms by taking over 50 per cent of the liabilities (Rs 8162.09 crore), calculated by March 31, 2012, to set the stage for their restructuring. Besides, the arrears of the power bills in the state are pegged at nearly Rs 4,155 crore.

Since April 1, 2012, the discoms had affected six power tariff hikes, the last being Rs 0.34 hike on account of fuel surcharge adjustment with effect from October 1 last year.

The subsidy

• The Hooda govt announces subsidy of `200 per bill for up to 1,600 units.
• No power tariff hike for the 2014-15 financial year.
• The govt to pay the subsidy amount to discoms from the state budget.