Over 350 per cent rise from 2001-02 rate for those using up to 50 units a month
BHOPAL: The successive state governments might be wearing their pro-poor credentials on their sleeves and shouting from the rooftops about their concern for the ‘aam aadmi’, but a study of the power tariffs in the state shows that the truth lies somewhere else. It is not the industrialists or the traders but you and me who have borne the brunt of the growing power tariff.
MP Electricity Regulatory Commission had issued its first Retail Supply Tariff Order in September 26, 2001 and it was made applicable from the fiscal year 2001-02. The latest tariff order, issued on March 31 this year, is meant for FY 2017-18.
A comparison of the tariffs shows that in the past 16 years, not only has rise been the highest for domestic consumers but among them also, those consuming less than 50 units – described as ‘lifeline users’- have been the hardest hit.
While the tariff for the domestic consumers with up to 50 units consumption per month has grown by 350 per cent in this period, the comparative figure for the highest slab is 220 per cent. In 2001-02, those consuming up to 50 units per month were billed at the rate of Rs 1.10 per unit. In 2017-18, they will pay Rs 3.85 per unit. The highest slab in 2001-02 was 400-plus units per month and the rate was Rs 2.85 per unit. In 2017-18, those consuming more than 300 units will be billed at the rate of Rs 6.30 per unit.
In case of industrial consumers, the charges ranged from Rs 2.49 per unit to Rs 4.54 per unit depending on the capacity of the industrial plant in 2001-02. In 2017-18, it will be between Rs 4.80 and Rs 6.70 per unit – an average increase of 160 per cent.
In case of railway traction, the tariff went up from Rs 3.14 per unit to Rs 5.90 unit between 2001-02 and 2017-18 – an average increase of 187 per cent.
For non-domestic consumers – meaning shopping malls, showrooms and other commercial establishments – the tariff ranged between Rs 3.64 per unit and Rs 4.34 per unit in 2001-02, will be between Rs 6.10 and Rs 7.40 per unit in 2017-18 – an average increase of 168 per cent.
