BENGALURU: Energy minister V Sunil Kumar has clarified that there is no proposal to hike power tariff and that the government has not issued any directive in this regard.
Speaking to ANI, Kumar said there is a difference in the expenditure incurred due to higher costs of coal and petroleum products. “A wrong message had been conveyed regarding the revision in power tariffs in some quarters,” he said.
“There is no proposal before the government to hike the power tariffs, but there is a practice of increasing power tariffs once a year”, he said while clarifying that consumers need not worry about rumours of a power tariff hike.
The state has 13 thermal power stations and they have adequate supply of coal and petroleum products, Kumar said. There is a revision in fuel cost adjustment charges every quarter in tune with the market rates that are accrued to the ESCOMs.
The minister said the regulator KERC has the right to recommend a revision in power tariffs based on these costs.
Earlier on June 27, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai instructed the extension of the term of the one-man committee, headed by retired IAS officer G Gurucharan, for the rejuvenation of electric supply companies (ESCOMs) in the state. (ANI)