Fuel surcharge imposition in UP: Consumers to pay 10 pc extra on June power bills
Lucknow, May 30
The Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited has formally notified a 10 per cent Fuel and Power Purchase Adjustment Surcharge on electricity bills for June, a move that will affect consumers across all categories in the state.
The surcharge has been imposed to recover the additional expenditure incurred on power procurement and transmission costs in accordance with regulations framed by the Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission.
According to an order issued on May 29, the 10 per cent increase corresponding to the month of March will be recovered through electricity bills issued in June. The decision means consumers will have to bear an additional burden on their monthly power bills as part of the fuel surcharge adjustment mechanism.
The Fuel and Power Purchase Adjustment Surcharge is levied to compensate distribution companies for fluctuations in fuel prices and the increased cost of purchasing electricity from various sources.
The development comes at a time when several parts of Uttar Pradesh are witnessing widespread and prolonged power outages amid an intense heatwave that has pushed temperatures beyond 45 degrees Celsius in many districts.
The soaring temperatures have significantly increased electricity consumption as households, commercial establishments, and industries rely heavily on cooling appliances and other electrical equipment to cope with the extreme weather conditions.
As a result, electricity demand across the state has surged sharply and is reported to be up by nearly 5,000 MW compared to previous years.
Although Uttar Pradesh has expanded its transmission infrastructure and enhanced its power transmission capacity in recent years, officials acknowledge that the increase has not kept pace with the rapidly growing demand from consumers.
— IANS
Reader Comments
I understand the Fuel and Power Purchase Adjustment Surcharge mechanism, but why is the burden always on the consumer? The Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation should improve its efficiency in power procurement and reduce transmission losses instead of passing every fluctuation to us. With summer bills already high, this extra 10% is a big blow to middle-class families like ours.
Living in Lucknow and facing 4-6 hour power cuts daily. The irony is that we are asked to pay more for electricity we barely get! 😡 The government claims to have expanded transmission capacity, but clearly, it's not enough. Instead of surcharging us, they should invest in alternative energy sources like solar to reduce dependency on expensive thermal power.
As someone who moved from the US to India recently, I'm shocked by how frequent power cuts are here. In California, we had reliability issues during heatwaves too, but at least the utility companies gave prior notice and offered rebates for conservation. This extra 10% surcharge without any service improvement feels like a penalty for the poor infrastructure management.
The key problem is that UPPCL is recovering costs from March in June—this adjustment lag shows poor financial planning. If fuel prices fell next month, will they give us a 10% discount? Very unlikely. The regulation needs more transparency. For now, I'm considering installing solar panels; at least then I will have some control over my power bills. 😒
Meanwhile, our politicians keep promising '24x7 bijli' but here we are—paying more for fewer hours of power. The
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