Citizens’ Forum Slams MERC for Rolling Back Tariff Cuts Without Public Hearing

Pune, 27th June 2025: The Sajag Nagrik Manch, a prominent citizens’ forum, has strongly criticized the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) for allegedly reversing its own landmark electricity tariff reduction order without giving consumers a chance to be heard.

Forum president Vivek Velankar pointed out that on March 28, MERC had issued an 827-page order promising tariff cuts of up to 10% by 2025–26 and as much as 16% by 2029–30 across domestic, commercial, and industrial categories. Velankar described that order as historic, delivering tariff reductions ranging from 5% to 15%.

However, on Wednesday, MERC reportedly accepted a review petition from the state power distribution company, Mahavitaran (MSEDCL), almost in full. This effectively rolled back much of the promised relief, with Velankar alleging that only domestic consumers using up to 100 units of electricity will still see significant benefits.

He further claimed that neither MERC nor Mahavitaran published the April-end review petition on their websites, depriving citizens of any chance to object or respond. Intervention petitions filed by groups like Prayas were also ignored, he alleged.

“It seems MERC has admitted Mahavitaran’s arguments wholesale, practically accepting that its own March decision was wrong,” Velankar said, arguing that this amounted to giving Mahavitaran a free hand to fix tariffs.

Taking a sarcastic dig, he remarked, “The government might as well dissolve the MERC entirely and allow Mahavitaran to set tariffs on its own.”