Centre wants power subsidy by direct benefit transfer

The central government will push for Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) of electricity subsidy, as with cooking gas, in the states. It would also like states to reduce cross-subsidy charges to 20 per cent for industrial and commercial consumers, R K Singh, the Union minister of state for power, said. He was speaking at the All States Power Ministers Conference. DBT would, he said, make for a more competitive sector, beside helping to control a rise in supply rates.DBT in power was introduced by the government of Bihar this year, while raising rates by 25 per cent across all slabs. DBT was introduced subsidy for some poorer sections and farmers. Singh said the Centre has urged all states to reduce the number of billing slabs and cap the cross-subsidy charge for industries at 20 per cent, as proposed in the National Tariff Policy-2016. Currently, there are as many as 60-90 slabs in some states. The aim is to curtail these to 12-15. Business Standard had reported earlier that the Centre was .