POWER DEMAND IN TS FALLS EVEN ON HOTTER DAYS

Annual Revenue Requirement (ARR) report and tariff proposals to TS Electricity Regulatory Commission (ERC). After getting the proposals from the Discoms, the ETC has to conduct hearings to know the opinion of stakeholders regarding the power tariff proposals. Next, the ERC decides the power tariff depending on government subsidy to the power department.

Completing this process takes at least two months. If the present lockdown situation continues for a longer period, it will take even more time to finalise the power tariff.

The state government is also considering increasing registration charges from six to nine per cent. At the same time government will also increase the land value.

Property tax and house tax were also to be raised, but were postponed due to the municipal elections.

With everyone’s attention on the pandemic and people confined to their homes and experiencing much hardship, the state government feels increasing taxes and other charges will only have a negative impact politically on the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti.

The power demand has come down in Telangana state despite the present hot sunny days due to the lockdown.

In Hyderabad, power consumption plummeted. Overall, the state’s power demand has come down to

219 million units (MU) on Sunday due to the janata curfew from 236 MU demand on the previous day.

Within GHMC limits, power demand has come down by 8 MU. Compared to on janta curfew day on Monday, the power demand increased a little. However, compared to previous days this month, the overall power consumption has reduced considerably. Usually from March to June end, the power demand increases daily.

In the summer, power consumption spikes in the domestic and commercial sectors because of the rampant use the ACs. On March 21, before the janta curfew, the power demand in the state was 236 MU and on Monday, it was 224 MU. In Hyderabad, the power demand on March

21 was 49 .8 MU and on Monday it was 42.8 MU.

Transco and Genco chairman and MD Devulapally Prabhakar Rao said that due to the state lockdown, the power demand has come down in the state. He said the power consumption in the farm sector will continue for the next few days. After that, the power demand will be further reduced.

Mr Rao said that they are supplying the power to all sectors in the state uninterruptedly. He said due state lockdown in the state, Transco field staff is not allowed by police to attend power problems if any.

He said he has requested the police not to obstruct the power staff in attending to emergency power problems anywhere in the city or in the state.