BANGALORE: Following the power hike proposal filed by the BESCOM seeking increase by 88 paise, the Karnataka Energy Regulatory Commission (KERC) held a public hearing on Thursday, where objectors to the power hike were given a chance to express their opinions.D V Subash, Karnataka Textile Mills Association, stated that the Textile Industry is facing financial problems because of rising costs of raw materials and the production takes place round the clock, hence they use power constantly. He submitted that the proposed tariff hike would take the cost of a unit to 5.38 paise, which is unacceptable.P L Rao, Prashant Nagar Residents’ Welfare Association, stated that political interference by the power minister on the topic must stop while the matter is with KERC. He also stated that a hike of 28 per cent within the current year is unnecessary as there has not been enough growth to justify it.V S Arabatti, counsel appearing for the BWSSB argued that the cost of power constitutes 64 per cent of the gross water tariffs, which can be raised only through the proposed 88 paise power hike. P Manivannan, Managing Director, BESCOM reiterated that the proposed hike was a direct result of increase in power purchasing costs. He said that BESCOM is forced to buy extra power to meet the demands during peak hours.He pointed out that BESCOM has managed to reduce the interruption percentage considerably and the power hike was part of their efforts to provide uninterrupted supply.
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