The power companies have been empowered by the Ministry of Power to increase or decrease the rates of incremental cast under the fuel surcharge relative to the increase in the rates of fuel and coal by the Government of India.
After the increase in rates, companies will get approval from the regulatory commission within 60 days. This order of the Central Government has been followed by Uttar Pradesh. The State Electricity Consumer Council has started the protest. The council says that with this order the additional burden of electricity rates will be imposed on the consumers.
Council President Awadhesh Kumar Verma has told that the Central Government has given these instructions to all the power companies and regulatory commission. With this decision, under the Electricity Recovery Cost Change in Law Rule-2021, the power companies will automatically increase the fuel surcharge if fuel and coal become expensive. The generating units will be free to increase the fuel surcharge at an arbitrary rate. It is alleged that the government is issuing such orders by keeping the powers of the regulatory commissions of the states under pressure from the private houses. This will affect the consumers of all the states of the country.
He has said that consumer councils and organizations across the country will be brought on one platform to protest against this decision. This law made by the central government is unconstitutional and anti-consumer interests. It is worth noting that Uttar Pradesh already has a regulatory commission’s law that when the rates of fuel and coal are increased, the rates of incremental cast cannot be increased or decreased without the approval of the commission.
