ENA State 2023-09-25 13:23:01 <p><span style="font-size:14px"><strong>Chennai, Sept 25 (KNN)</strong> Micro and small-scale industries in Tamil Nadu have declared a temporary shutdown of their activities on Monday in protest against high electricity costs during peak hours and the imposition of fixed charges on power loads, among other grievances.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px"><strong><a href="https://bit.ly/3B9mZSj"><img alt="FOLLOW US on GOOGLE NEWS" src="https://knnindia.co.in//uploads/gallery/GoogleNews.jpg" style="border-style:solid; border-width:1px; height:95px; margin:1px; width:299px" /></a></strong></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">Representative bodies of more than 250 industrial estates, product/sector-based organisations and district-based associations formed Tamil Nadu Industrial Electricity Consumers' Federation earlier this month. They have collectively decided to shut down their operations against the tariff structure of the state-owned distribution company Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO).</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">The industry bodies have decided to go on strike despite Chief Minister MK Stalin's series of announcements providing respites such as a cut in fixed charges, a slight reduction in peak-hour tariff, and flexibility for seasonal industries to change the electrical load four times a year, based on demand.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">As per reports, the organisers have decided to explore the next steps if the Tamil Nadu government doesn't respond to the demands, including a prolonged strike, which would have ramifications for the state's major industrial sectors like automobiles, textiles, and leather, among others.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">Speaking to TNIE, Federation's coordinator J James said there's no sub-meter to track peak-hour usage and an arbitrary 15 per cent charge on total consumption has been imposed on micro and small-scale industries.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">These charges would apply even if we don't consume power during those hours, he added.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">The federation calls for a reduction of the peak time to four hours from eight at present and charge 20 per cent for high-tension lines. The industry owners also demand permits for the direct purchase of electricity from private players and the removal of solar networking charges. <em><strong>(KNN Bureau)</strong></em></span></p> 34911 https://knnindia.co.in/news/newsdetails/state/tamil-nadu-micro-small-units-observe-shutdown-over-power-tariff-hike 2023-09-25 13:23:01 knnindia.co.in