Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
The Chhattisgarh government has announced an increase in electricity rates with the approval of the Chhattisgarh State Electricity Regulatory Commission which will hurt the small and agricultural consumers the most. The increased electricity rates have been implemented from the month of July itself.
Through these increased rates, the state government will collect an additional Rs 523 crore annually of which the Rs 330 crore will be collected from domestic consumers and the balance from industrial consumers.
The increase in rates for domestic consumers is an average of 15 paise per unit. However, the maximum burden has been imposed on those who, being poor, consume less electricity. Those who consume up to 100 units, which includes those with single light connections and people below the poverty line and low income groups, have been charged an additional 20 paise per unit, while for consumption above 100 units, the increase is only 10 paise/unit. For industrial consumers too the increase is only 10 paise per unit.
The most-hard hit are the farmers for whom the rate has been increased by 50 paise per unit. This will further increase the agricultural crisis in the state, as the production cost will increase significantly. This year, farmers are already struggling with the shortage of DAP fertilizer and its black marketing and their cost of fertilizer has doubled.
It is clear that the rate increase is a step in the direction of stopping provision of subsidized power. Big power monopolies of Tata, Adani, Torrent and others want all subsidies on power supply to be abolished before state owned distribution companies are privatised. The Chhattisgarh government is evidently preparing the ground for privatisation of the power sector through this rate increase. The state government has taken yet another step towards privatisation through the installation of the pre-paid smart meters.