Gulbarga Electricity Supply Company (GESCOM), a State-owned undertaking supplying electricity in impoverished Hyderabad Karnataka region, has demanded that Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) allow a hike in retail power tariff by 162 paisa per unit across all categories of consumers.
However, GESCOM’s proposal has attracted criticisms from consumers and civil society organisations.
Hyderabad Karnataka Environment Awareness and Protection Organisation (HKEAPO), in its objection filed in the first week of February, has demanded that KERC not allow GESCOM to transfer the financial burden caused by its own mismanagement.
“The gaps in revenues and expenditures are the results of GESCOM’s mismanagement of power distribution, including power theft, and its inability to recover long-pending subsidy dues from the government along with interest,” Deepak Gala, president of HKEAPO, told The Hindu here on Wednesday.
As per information available, the State government had an outstanding subsidy due of ₹ 1,852.89 crore — ₹ 773.20 crore principal amount and ₹ 1079.69 crore interest —payable to GESCOM for having supplied free power to irrigation pumpsets of farmers since 2008, as per a Government Order.
It has also been found that no government, since 2008 when free power supply to irrigation pumpsets was announced, has paid full power costs incurred on irrigation pumpsets in any year. It was only in 2015-16 and 2016-17 that the State government headed by Siddaramaiah paid a relatively large amount to bring down the pending dues to ₹ 1,852.89 crore.
“If the dues are collected, there will be no need to hike power tariff and transfer the burden to consumers. GESCOM has not calculated the interest on dues of principal amount and added it to outstanding dues, though there is no provision in the Electricity Act 2003 for exempting government from being levied interest on its dues. When the poor doesn’t pay electricity bill, GESCOM levies interest and when the government fails to pay dues, it doesn’t. It is unfair and it is a violation of the Electricity Act,” Mr. Gala said.
Successive governments kept on announcing free power supply to irrigation pumpsets to appease farmers and failed to pay power charges incurred on irrigation pumpsets, he added. “Farming community is in a crisis and announcing free power supply to them is a good thing. But, the government should show the same interest in paying power costs so that public sector units can survive,” he said.
KERC is going to hold a stakeholders meeting in Kalaburagi on Friday to seek objections to GESCOM’s demand for retail power tariff hike.
