Telangana Congress seeks rollback of an electricity tariff hike

Hyderabad, March (IANS) The opposition Congress in Telangana has demanded Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) to rollback the hike in electricity tariff as this has placed heavy burden on the poor and middle class.

Blaming the TRS government for Rs 60,000 crore losses of the power distribution companies, it remarked that it is a crime to put the people of Telangana in trouble for the sin committed by the government.

Party's national spokesperson Sravan Dasoju slammed ERC over power tariff hike and alleged that it is acting like puppets in the hands of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao.

A delegation of the Congress leaders headed by Sravan Dasoju met ERA chairman and submitted a representation demanding the immediate withdrawal of the electricity tariff hike.

It alleged that the people of Telangana are completely disappointed and frustrated with the unprecedented and steep hike of the electricity tariff. "The decision comes at a time when people have lost their employment and means of livelihood due to the attack of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic. And this increase of electricity tariff further burdens them, jeopardising their already battered life," said Dasoju.

"Even in the united Andhra Pradesh this kind of exorbitant enhancement of tariff did not take place. Especially, the hike for lower slabs of domestic consumers that is 0-100 and 100-200 is highly taxing for the poor and the middle classes".

"The TRS government boasts in the media that Telangana is a rich state. I wonder why such a rich state has taken such a brutal decision of burdening the people with a hike in the tariff. The hike is totally irresponsible and inhuman," said the Congress leader.

Dasoju lamented that on the one hand, the central government continuously increases petrol and diesel prices and on the other hand the government of Telangana has mercilessly resorted to enhancing the electricity tariff which only compounds the woes of the people.