BENGALURU: It is not just citizens who are crying foul over the hike in power tariff and hefty bills, but even commercial operators and industry bodies. Members of 32 district chambers of commerce and 200 associations met here on Tuesday opposing the power tariff hike. While most of them were of the unanimous opinion that they will protest and shut operations, heads of Federation of Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FKCCI) decided to put the protest on hold.
“We are not happy with the hike in power tariff, but we are hopeful. We have a meeting scheduled with Energy Minister KJ George. He has assured us that he will discuss it with the chief minister and also take it up in the cabinet. After that, the next course of action will be decided,” said FKCCI president BV Gopal Reddy.
“To fully leverage the government’s focus on the Make in India campaign, industries need sustained support from the government. Ensuring consistent power supply at affordable rates would definitely help the industry. It is essential to postpone any increase in power costs for a minimum of two years, taking into consideration the current growth in industrial output. It is also vital that bankers and financial institutions provide adequate assistance to overcome rising overheads and the impact of increased power costs,” said L Ravindran, president, the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC).
Members of the Bidadi Industries Association also wrote to the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) demanding a revision in power tariff. The industry associations stated that availing power through open access is also not a viable solution now as they will have to bear the costs of cross subsidy, transmission and distribution losses. There are many technical clauses which need to be assessed. It is ideal if the government and KERC take a relook at power tariffs, they added.
George to meet KPTCL officials
Energy Minister KJ George on Tuesday held a review meeting with officials of the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) to take stock of the transmission works and chalk out a plan for systemic improvement. At the meeting, the minister is said to have directed the officials to make power supply more reliable and reduce the transmission and distribution losses.