VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) public hearing for the Retail Supply Tariff Filings was held in Vijayawada on Tuesday.
CPM State leader Ch Babu Rao and other leaders contested the claims of Discoms that there would be no burden on the people of the State as there is no proposal to increase the power tariff. “Though there is no increase in the power tariff, there will be a substantial increase in the power charges indirectly in the form of true-up charges, and Fuel and Power Purchase Cost Adjustment (FPPCA),” Babu Rao pointed out.
Soon after the public hearing commenced with APERC Incharge Chairman Thakur Ram Singh, and member PV Reddy presiding over it, the heads of three Discoms -- APSPDCL, APCPDCL and APEPDCL -- made PowerPoint presentation on the annual performance of the respective Discoms.
All three Discoms informed the APERC chief that they are not proposing any hike in power tariff, and will continue with the existing power tariff, and directions being issued by the APERC from time to time.
Later, Babu Rao bemoaned that Discoms have started functioning as private entities disregarding their primary responsibility towards power consumers.
“Though they are stating that there is no hike, a total of Rs 72,022 crore burden is being imposed on the people of the State in different manners like true-up charges, fuel adjustment charges, electricity and surcharge,” he said.
To emphasise how the domestic consumer is being burdened by power tariff, he showed an increase in the power charges for the same number of units consumed in different financial years.
“In Vijayawada, once a consumer used just two units, but he got a bill of Rs 910. The previous government had put the burden on the people, and the current dispensation, which assured that there would not be any more burden on the people, went back on its word as evident from the power bills,” he said.
Babu Rao and other leaders, who presented their cases before the APERC, demanded a thorough inquiry into allegations of corruption in the SECI deal, pointing out the reports of Adani paying a bribe of Rs 1,750 crore to former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. They alleged corruption in short-term power purchase deals, and demanded an inquiry into them.
They cited facts and figures from the white paper on energy presented by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu a few months ago to buttress their argument.