Ranchi — Electricity tariffs in Jharkhand have been revised upward by an average of 6.12 per cent, with urban domestic consumers now set to pay Rs 7.40 per unit. The revised rates were announced by the Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission and will come into force from April 1, remaining applicable till March 31, 2027.
As per the new tariff structure, the rate for urban households has increased from Rs 6.85 to Rs 7.40 per unit, while rural domestic consumers will pay Rs 7.20 per unit, compared to Rs 6.70 earlier. The Commission, however, has left fixed meter charges unchanged across all categories, offering some relief to consumers.
The revision is considerably lower than the hike of up to 59 per cent earlier proposed by Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited. Following public hearings conducted across five divisions, the regulator approved a more moderate increase, ranging between 50 paise and 80 paise per unit for different categories.
Commercial users will now pay Rs 7.30 per unit in urban areas, up from Rs 6.70, while rural commercial tariffs have been raised to Rs 6.70 from Rs 6.20. Industrial Low Tension consumers will be charged Rs 6.60 per unit instead of Rs 6.10, and other industrial units will pay Rs 6.40 per unit, up from Rs 5.90.
Tariffs for High Tension domestic consumers have increased from Rs 6.40 to Rs 7.20 per unit. Street lighting charges have also been revised upward to Rs 7.60 per unit from Rs 7.00, with slight increases applied to special services and other categories as well.
The Commission retained consumer incentives, including up to 2 per cent rebate for timely bill payments. Prepaid meter users will get an additional 3 per cent rebate on energy charges along with a refund of their security deposit.
No tariff hike has been announced for agricultural consumers. In a move to promote electric mobility, the rate for EV charging during solar hours has been reduced from Rs 7.31 to Rs 7 per unit. Officials said the revision remains moderate compared to earlier proposals.
With inputs from IANS