A public hearing was held by the Telangana State Electricity Regulatory Commission (TSERC) here at Zilla Parishad hall seeking
public opinion on the proposed revision of power tariff in the State.
The meeting was chaired by TSERC chairman Ismail Ali Khan. The commission members L Manohar Reddy (technical) and H Srinivasulu
(financial) were present. The chairman and managing director of the TSNPDCL K Venkata Narayana presented new tariff proposals aimed at earning additional revenue to the tune of Rs. 263 crore in order to bridge revenue gap for the year 2015-16.
He said the tariff proposals would only bridge a gap of 6.5 per cent and there would still be a gap of Rs 3,789 crore for the year.
There were no tariff proposals for low tension-I category up to 100 units per month and the free power supply to farmers. The NPDCL chairman pointed out that out of 50.04 lakh consumers 39.64 lakhs consumers would not be affected by the tariff proposals.
Farmers, representatives of various NGOs and consumer groups attended the hearing and surprisingly no leader from any political party attended the event.
Consumer Council representative S Chakrapani said the political leaders lacked seriousness on the issue. He opined that instead of increasing the tariff, the organisation should focus on reducing transmission and distribution losses. It could also modernise the equipment to improve overall quality.
Bharatiya Kisan Sangh leaders D Ramulu and P Anji Reddy wanted the commission to ensure payment of compensation to farmers who died of electric shock owing to erratic supply. The NPDCL directors B Venkateshwar Rao, G Sudershan, R John Prakash rao and B Narsinga Rao were present.
