The draft Electricity (Amendment) Rules, 2022, published by the Centre in August will adversely affect ordinary electricity consumers, the Power department informed the State Assembly on Thursday.
The draft proposals will also add strength to the attempts being made by the Central government to privatise electricity distribution, the department said.
The draft rules seek to allow distribution licensees to modify electricity prices on a monthly basis to recover their additional spending on fuel and power purchase. This will lead to frequent changes in electricity tariffs as in the case of petrol and diesel, according to the department.
Moreover, state electricity regulatory commissions will no longer have the power to judiciously fix tariffs after analysing the income and expenditure of distribution licensees, the department said.
Kerala to oppose
Minister for Devaswoms and Parliamentary Affairs K. Radhakrishnan, who responded on behalf of Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty to a calling attention motion on the draft rules, said Kerala will join like-minded states in opposing the proposals. The opinions and suggestions of the State will be formally conveyed to the Central government soon, Mr. Radhakrishnan said.
A. Prabhakaran of the CPI(M), calling the attention of the Electricity Minister to the issue, wanted the State government to press the Centre to withdraw the draft rules. The draft rules seek to empower private distribution companies to raise electricity prices as they choose and leave the regulatory commissions powerless in this matter. The Central government is bent on transforming electricity into a commodity which can be exploited by corporates, Mr. Prabhakaran said.
