Industries in Mysuru have opposed the proposal by the Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation (CESC) to raise tariffs for industrial and commercial consumers to offset cost of subsidized power supply to Irrigation Pump (IP) sets for agriculture.

The proposed revision, currently before the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC), seeks to recover part of the subsidy shortfall arising from the power supplied to agricultural pump sets.

The CESC and other ESCOMs in the State, through a Review Petition filed with KERC, sought modification of the KERC Tariff Order-2025. It was contended by CESC and other ESCOMs that there was a funding gap as the State government had budgeted ₹16,021 crore towards subsidy support, while the actual requirement is estimated at ₹20,640 crore, thus resulting in a shortfall.

To bridge this difference, the ESCOMs have proposed to levy a higher tariff for industrial and commercial consumers.

Hence, the CESC and other ESCOMs have sought to increase the energy charges for LT-5 (industrial) consumers from ₹4.50 to ₹5.20 per unit, while for HT-2A (industrial) consumers, the rate would be increased from ₹6.60 to ₹6.70 per unit. Fixed charges would also be raised by ₹15 to ₹20 per horsepower (HP) depending on the category, as per the proposal.

Industries file objections

The Mysore Industries Association (MIA) has taken strong exception to the proposal, arguing that industries are being asked to bear the burden of the shortfall, which is a result of government policy.

MIA president P. Vishwanath and secretary Suresh Kumar Jain, in their objection before the KERC, said this was an attempt to recover the government’s subsidy liability from industries.

The Association members have stated that the State government has repeatedly defaulted on timely subsidy payments to the ESCOMs and the burden was being passed on to the industries.

The MIA argued that the review petition filed by the ESCOMs was not maintainable as it sought to rework the tariff design and subsidy allocation. These are matters that should be pursued through an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL), it added.

Mr. Jain said electricity charges for industries in the region was already on the higher side when compared with other industrial clusters in south India.

Any increase would affect cost competitiveness, particularly for micro, small, and medium enterprises and make them economically unviable, he added.

There are also concerns among the stakeholders that higher tariffs could discourage new investment and strain existing units that were already tottering due to the arket situation.

The MIA has urged the KERC to reject the petition and to evolve a structured roadmap for gradual reduction of cross-subsidy, so that industrial and commercial consumers are not repeatedly burdened to offset subsidy gaps in other sectors.