Lucknow: Hours after the Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (UPERC) announced that power tariffs for 2026-27 would remain unchanged, the Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad asked energy minister Arvind Kumar Sharma to ensure the withdrawal of pending legal appeals that it says could push tariffs up later.In a letter to Sharma, the consumer body urged him to direct Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) and state power distribution companies to withdraw cases pending before the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL).Consumer body chairman Avadhesh Kumar Verma said the appeals challenge financial deductions made by UPERC in tariff orders issued over the last six years.Verma claimed tariffs have stayed steady for seven consecutive years mainly due to the consumer body’s legal interventions, which he said created a surplus of more than Rs 51,000 crore in favour of consumers. He argued that despite this, tariffs have not been reduced because the APTEL proceedings have kept the issue unresolved.Verma said UPERC has told the consumer body in writing that the matter cannot be decided while it is sub judice.Verma warned that if UPPCL and discoms succeed, restored claims could translate into higher tariffs. No response was received from energy minister Arvind Kumar Sharma on the issue.
