Uproar over steep increase in electricity bills after tariff revision in July last

A large section of consumers whose monthly electricity bills have shown a steep increase since the tariff was revised in July this year, have petitioned the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission to review the current billing pattern. The consumers are outraged by the sharp escalation of the monthly dues and have demanded that the Commission rework the tariff structure and reintroduce the 201-400 units slab that has been dispensed with in the new tariff order.

Say Govt. must focus on making the most of available resources

As Delhi gets ready to implement public-private partnership models in the city to plug water and revenue leaks and ensure round-the-clock supply, water conservation experts want the Administration to look beyond dams and private companies and focus instead on water harvesting, recycling and off-channel reservoirs.

As governments grapple with mounting quantities of waste and draft policies to tackle it, waste pickers who earn their livelihood from collection, segregation and disposal of waste still remain neglected, reveals a new study by a non-government organisation.

Accessing the welfare programmes and the prevalent rules for waste management in 14 major cities, Chintan, an environment action and research group, in its report ‘Failing the Grade’ has claimed that there was no city that has fully implemented the rules and policies for waste pickers.

“By putting off a cost reflective tariff and extending subsidies, we may seem to help the consumer, but what we are actually doing is bleeding the State electricity boards and eventually burdening the consumer with surcharge after the losses become untenable,” said an official of the power department explaining why reforms in the power sector must begin with a realistic power tariff, curtailing losses and replacing short-term sops with long-term schemes.

Dissecting the causes for the grid collapse that left the city powerless on Monday and Tuesday, officials of the power distribution companies as well as the government’s power department were unanimous that the State electricity boards have been pushed to withdraw spending on system up-gradation because of their poor financial condition.

Power cuts triggered by the grid collapse on Monday and Tuesday have flagged the need for investing in the power systems. The Delhi Government on Tuesday decided to act on the warning that the grid collapse turned out to be and set up a committee to enforce system strengthening and maintenance.

The city had to face power cuts through the day on Tuesday, after the country’s three grids, the Northern, Easter and the North-Eastern grids collapsed. A prolonged meeting chaired by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit ended with the Principal Secretary Power being appointed chairperson of a committee that has been set up to ensure that all the State-owned generation units and the discoms spend money on improving the systems

“Serious social and environmental violations,” says group

An independent fact-finding team has called for suspension of work related to the upcoming 4,000 MW Tata Mundra Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) in Gujarat, citing “serious social and environmental violations”. The team, led by former Chief Justice of Sikkim S.N. Bhargava, released a report –‘The Real Cost of Power’- and presented the findings from the ground. “The project has disproportionately high social, environmental, and economic costs.

The recent hike in power tariffs announced by the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission has hit the average consumer the hardest.

To understand the impact that the tariff hike will have on the aam aadmi , here is an illustration.A consumer who uses a modest 250 units of power, which means a cooler for six hours, apart from a few light bulbs, fans, electric iron, television, motor pump and a refrigerator every day will see a whopping 53 per cent jump in the monthly power bill from July 1.

A new survey of water bodies in just one district of the Capital has thrown up alarming results -- encroachment, neglect and even disappearance. This, when the Delhi High Court has instructed the Government to step up efforts for water body preservation and restoration. Also, government agencies that are mandated to preserve these water bodies are actually responsible for encroachment in several areas.

The study that was conducted by Diwan Singh of the non-government organisation Natural Heritage First in South West Delhi between December 2011 and May 2012 assessed the present condition of water bodies in the city.

The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission delivered one more electric shock to the Capital’s citizens on Tuesday, announcing an increase of about 26% in the monthly power bills beginning July 1.

Announcing the revised electricity tariff for 2012-13, the regulator gave the power distribution companies an overall raise of 20.87% across various categories. In addition, all consumers will have to pay a surcharge of 8% on the total bill.

Pumps stop droning as Delhiites make efforts for equal distribution

“There is growing consciousness among consumers about the water crisis and how they can contribute to alleviating it. The examples of Green Park and Hill View Apartments are an illustration of how the residents’ welfare associations can help the government and in turn help themselves. Governments, non-government organisations, water experts have all been saying the inevitable - there is going to be a water crisis and it will happen in all cities.