From April, both households and businesses in Karnataka will face higher electricity costs as the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) has approved an increase in fixed charges for the next three years. The new tariff rates will be reflected in electricity bills starting from May.
Under the revised structure, the per-unit charge will be ₹5.80 for the first two years, and ₹5.75 in 2027-28. While the energy charge has been slightly reduced by 10 paise per unit, fixed charges will rise by ₹25 in 2025-26, ₹30 in 2026-27, and ₹40 in 2027-28. Currently, the per-unit energy charge is ₹5.90, and fixed charges are ₹120.
This revision follows a proposal submitted by electricity supply companies (Escoms) in November 2024, requesting an increase of 67 paise per unit for 2025-26, 75 paise for 2026-27, and 91 paise for 2027-28. After public hearings and reviews, KERC issued its order on Thursday.
Additionally, an extra surcharge of 36 paise per unit in 2025-26, 35 paise in 2026-27, and 34 paise in 2027-28 has been introduced to cover the pension and gratuity payments for retired employees of KPTCL and Escoms. However, Gruha Jyothi beneficiaries will remain unaffected as their electricity costs are subsidized by the government.
In another significant update, milk prices in Karnataka will increase by ₹4 per litre from April 1. The price hike is in response to requests from milk federations and farmers, who had initially asked for a ₹5 increase. State Cooperation Minister K N Rajanna emphasized that the entire ₹4 increase will be passed directly to farmers. This decision comes shortly after hikes in bus and metro fares, as well as power tariffs.
For a typical household in Bengaluru consuming about 150 units per month with a 2-3 kW meter, the reduction in energy charges will save ₹15, but the hike in fixed charges will lead to an overall increase of ₹35-60 per month. For households consuming over 200 units per month with 5-6 kW meters, the increase could exceed ₹100.