Chandigarh: With outstanding arrears of Rs 8,200 crore, Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam and Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam are pressing for fuel surcharge adjustments on electricity consumers across the state. The two power distribution companies have proposed a Fuel Surcharge Adjustment (FSA) of 47 paisa per unit on all 84 lakh electricity consumers to recover a total of over Rs 2,500 crore. Experts calculate that this may inflate monthly bills by over 10%, depending on consumption and other charges.
Public Hearing on FSA
The issue was discussed during a public hearing on FSA organized by the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC), chaired by Nand Lal Sharma. Former minister and INLD patron Sampat Singh represented the case in person and faced opposition from a battery of lawyers representing the power utilities. When confronted with queries, the utilities' lawyers sought an adjournment, forcing HERC to fix June 10 as the next date of hearing.
Allegations of Secret Payments
During the meeting, Sampat Singh accused the government of making a secretive payment of nearly Rs 1,300 crore to Sikkim Urja Limited in October 2025 without adequate transparency. He stated, 'Discoms are attempting to burden consumers with the consequences of administrative failures and corporate favoritism. If you go deeply, the government had sufficient option to contest that amount.' Singh also claimed that power utilities failed to pass on nearly Rs 2,263 crore of negative FSA surplus benefits to consumers since 2021.
Subsidy Dues and Borrowings
Citing Section 65 of the Electricity Act, 2003, Singh said the Haryana government had not released subsidy dues of Rs 1,971 crore, forcing discoms to rely on commercial borrowings. The former finance minister feared that total borrowings of discoms crossed Rs 22,132 crore as of March 31, 2025, while the final figure is yet to be consolidated.
