The Union Government has told the Government of Kerala (GoK) that they would extend the central aid towards the Revamping Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) only after the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) collects arrears up to June 30. The uncollected amount is Rs 3585.69 crore. Kerala is supposed to get Rs 10,411 crore under the RDSS. KSEB can get Rs 8,175.05 crore and Rs 2235.78 crore by implementing the Smart Meter Scheme and other loss compensation measures, respectively. The Union Government has assured the state that they would provide Rs 2235.78 crore immediately after the Kerala government issues an order with details of guidelines for collecting arrears.
The Union Government put forward the condition in a meeting of the state electricity ministers. Kerala delegates told the meeting that they would collect the arrears in 10 to 12 instalments. However, the Central government asked the state to give a clear-cut schedule by which the arrears would be collected. Kerala was represented by top bureaucrats from the energy department. Centre has reportedly expressed dissatisfaction in the slow progress Kerala shows in installing system metres to reduce transmission losses.
Kerala has been averse to TOTEX type of smart metres. Kerala officials maintain that the state’s billing and collection is ‘efficient’.
According to reports KSEB’s total arrears is Rs 3,585.69 crore. Its breakdown is as follows:-
- State government departments: Rs 141.43 crore
- Central Government departments: Rs 2.09 crore
- Domestic consumers: Rs 389.81 crore
- Local Self Governing bodies: Rs 6.74 crore
- State Public Sector Undertakings: Rs 1,768.80 crore
- Central Public Sector Undertakings: Rs 110.42 crore
- Private institutions: Rs 1,086.15 crore
- Public institutions: Rs 64.51 crore
On the other hand, the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC) hiked its power charges on November 2. Its interim order says an average of 3.8 per cent increase in power tariffs for low tension (LT) consumers and 3.2 per cent average increase for high tension (HT) industrial consumers.
The new tariff has come into force on November 1 and will be valid until July 30, 204. Within the LT category, the domestic and agriculture segments are supposed to be much affected. Domestic consumers come around 76 per cent of the total power consumers in Kerala. They will suffer 4.7 per cent hike. Existing average cost of Rs 5.13 per unit will go up to Rs 5.37 per unit. The heaviest increase would be for LT Agriculture consumers. Their average tariff will go up from Rs 3 per unit to Rs 3.20 per unit, that is a 6.5 per cent increase. That last tariff revision for all segments in June 2022 resulted in 6.6 per cent hike. The latest hike will enable KSEB to bag Rs 734.58 crore during the nine months from November 2023 to July 2024. Domestic consumers alone will pay Rs 336.63 crore.
The aforementioned speaks out the ‘the’superficiency’ of KSEB and the government in collecting the arrears. And, the consumers are at the receiving end. If the collection is manned properly and transmission losses are prevented in the most scientific manner, the people could have escaped the burden of hiking charges.
