In the state, the price of electricity will increase by 23 to 27 percent.

Uttarakhand, 18 Dec 2023: Electricity will become expensive in the state from next year. In the board meeting of Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL), the proposal to increase electricity rates by 23 to 27 percent has been agreed. After this UPCL will file a petition in Uttarakhand Electricity Regulatory Commission regarding increasing the rates. The new electricity rates will be applicable from April 1, 2024.

On Saturday, a board meeting was held at Urja Bhawan under the chairmanship of Additional Chief Secretary and Corporation President Radha Raturi. In which a proposal was made to increase electricity rates. In the meeting, UPCL argued about the liability of crores of rupees and getting expensive electricity from Central Pool, SJVNL, UJVNL, THDC, NTPC behind increasing the electricity rates.

UPCL has to pay Rs 1281 crore more to buy electricity to meet the demand of the state. To compensate for this, it was recommended to increase electricity rates by 23 to 27 percent from next year. The proposal was approved in the board meeting. After discussion among the board members, UPCL will file a petition in the Electricity Regulatory Commission. The commission will take a decision on electricity tariff after public hearing. Many directors including UPCL Managing Director Anil Kumar were present in the meeting.

Many states proposed to increase tariffs

Due to expensive electricity, many states have also proposed to increase the tariff rates. Neighboring state Himachal has sent a proposal of 50 percent increase, Jharkhand 44 percent, Delhi 30 percent and Uttar Pradesh 20 percent to the Electricity Regulatory Commission of their state.