Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji

Panaji, Oct 28: Facing strong backlash over its proposed “Time of Day” (ToD) electricity tariff, Power Minister Ramakrishna Sudin Dhavalikar on Monday assured that the new system will not be applicable to domestic consumers for at least the next three years and will only cover industrial users.

Addressing a press conference, Dhavalikar said that ToD — a tariff system that charges differently based on the time of power usage — has existed for industrial consumers since 2015 under Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) norms. “This government will not impose ToD on domestic consumers. Once smart meters are installed, a proposal for 20% ToD on low tension lines can be studied by the next government in consultation with JERC,” he clarified.

The Minister also announced that installation of smart meters will begin in December, starting with government offices in the first phase, and the project will be completed within three years.

Earlier in the day, opposition parties — Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) — staged protests outside the State Electricity Department office, accusing the government of “confusion and mismanagement” in implementing the new rates. They demanded a rollback of the power tariff hike, which comes into effect from October 1, and accused Dhavalikar of misleading the public.

Chief Electrical Engineer Stephan Fernandes also reiterated that ToD presently applies only to industrial users. “For the next two to three years there will be no ToD for domestic consumers. What happens after that, I cannot say now,” he said.

According to JERC’s new tariff order, consumers with smart meters opting for ToD will be billed 80% of normal rates between 9 am and 5 pm, 120% between 5 pm and 1 am, and 100% between 1 am and 9 am. The general tariff hike stands at 5% for up to 400 units, and 6.2%–6.9% for consumption above 400 units.

Congress president Amit Patkar termed the tariff revision “anti-people” and demanded its withdrawal, while AAP president Amit Palekar warned that the move could “hurt middle-class families” and lead to public unrest.

Dhavalikar, however, maintained that the hike was approved by JERC and said, “We cannot go against the tariff order which is already in the public domain.”