NO POWER TARIFF HIKE IN UT THIS FISCAL

CHANDIGARH : In a major relief to more than two lakh power consumers in Chandigarh, the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) has decided there will be no hike in electricity tariff for 2020-21 fiscal. The charges for electric vehicle charging at designated outlets have also been reduced.

Responding to the tariff revision petition of the UT electricity department, the JERC in an order on Tuesday said, “No increase has been made in the retail tariff for existing categories due to standalone revenue surplus in financial year 2020-21.”

The last increase in the domestic and commercial electricity tariff was in 2018-2019.

In the domestic category, the approved rate is ₹2.75 in the slab of 0-150 units, ₹4.80 in the slab of 151-400 unit. In the slab of above 400 units, the rate is ₹5.20 per unit. In the commercial category, there is no change in the rate of ₹5 in the slab between 0-150 units, in slab of 151-400, the rate is ₹5.30 per unit, and above 400, it is ₹5.60.

RECOVERY OF FPPCA CHARGES STOPPED

Giving another relief to the residents, the JERC has directed the UT to stop recovery of the fuel and power purchase cost adjustment (FPPCA) from all consumer categories starting April 1, 2020, till its further orders. The FPPCA charges are imposed on user on quarterly basis, and are in addition to the tariff imposed in the bill. The directions have been issued on account of revenue surplus in 2020-21. The department, however, has been directed to submit the quarterly FPPCA calculation to the JERC for review.

In order to promote the use of electric vehicles (EV), the JERC has introduced a single-part tariff for EV charging stations, wherein the demand/fixed charges have been removed and the energy charges have been reduced from ₹4 per kilowatt hour (Kwh) to ₹3.80 per Kwh.