SRINAGAR: Chief minister Omar Abdullah Monday defended the power tariff hike in Jammu & Kashmir, saying the increase was minimal and that his govt had never promised that electricity rates would not increase.“When did we say that electricity rates will not increase? We said we will provide 200 units of free electricity to the poorest people, those who need it the most,” he said.Hitting back at political parties protesting the tariff hike, Omar said there had been only a 6% increase after a gap of four years, whereas it was much higher earlier. “Those who point fingers at me should remember that they too were in power here at some point. During their govt, electricity rates increased by more than 14%. They did not feel at that time that this was unfair,” he said. “Four years ago, electricity rates were increased by 15%, and even then, BJP remained silent.”“We are not celebrating an increase in electricity rates. This was our compulsion. As our losses in the power sector reduce, we will not need to take such steps,” the CM added.
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His statement came amid criticism that the tariff hike is at odds with the National Conference’s election promise of providing 200 units of free electricity.From Sept 1, consumers in Jammu & Kashmir will get higher power bills after the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission Saturday approved a 6.83% tariff hike across consumer categories.PDP staged a protest seeking a rollback of the tariff hike on Monday. BJP and People’s Conference, too, criticised the move, accusing the govt of burdening the common people.
