Electricity Tariff Order Spreads Tripura's Revenue-Gap Burden
TERC approved a Rs479.24 crore Revenue Gap for Tripura State Electricity Corporation but allowed only Rs117.77 crore against the existing FY27 Electricity Tariff. Full recovery of the approved amount in one year would have required an average increase of 42.82%, while TSECL's original Rs1,709.04 crore proposal could have implied about 147%. Partial recovery protects consumers from the sharpest immediate increase but leaves a balance that must ultimately be addressed. The order also introduces consumer-facing Smart Meter requirements covering consent, billing resolution, instalments and grievance handling. The regulatory trade-off is therefore timing rather than elimination of the liability. Future tariff orders must show how the residual gap is liquidated while maintaining affordability and financially sustainable Power Distribution.
