BESCOM consumers in Bengaluru will continue to pay an additional 56 paise per unit under a true-up charge approved by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC), with the increase applying from May 2026 until April 2027, according to a report by Vijay Karnataka.
The temporary charge has been permitted to help Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) recover part of an estimated revenue shortfall of about ₹2,068 crore incurred during the 2024-25 financial year. BESCOM had sought permission to increase the tariff by ₹1.20 per unit, but the electricity regulator approved an additional charge of 56 paise per unit instead.
The amount is being collected under the true-up mechanism, also referred to in the report as Fuel and Power Purchase Cost Adjustment, or FPPCA. It is not described as a permanent revision to BESCOM’s regular tariff. Instead, the additional amount is being recovered under special regulatory approval for the specified period.
The charge is linked to electricity consumption. A consumer using 100 units would pay approximately ₹56 extra, while consumption of 200 units would add about ₹112 to the bill. For 300 units, the additional amount would be approximately ₹168. The actual impact will therefore vary according to the number of units billed to each consumer.
The report said the additional charge would continue to appear in bills issued during October and November 2026 and would remain applicable until the relevant bills for the April-May 2027 period. The source describes the measure as part of the recovery of the deficit recorded by BESCOM in 2024-25, rather than as a recurring monthly surcharge without an end date.
Consumers registered under the Karnataka government’s Gruha Jyothi scheme are exempt from the true-up charge if they remain within the scheme’s prescribed free electricity limit and continue to receive a zero bill. The exemption therefore applies to eligible registered households that meet the scheme’s conditions, according to the report.
For other BESCOM consumers, the 56-paise charge creates a direct link between monthly electricity use and the recovery of the utility’s past financial gap. The arrangement also means that the effect on household budgets will differ between low-consumption homes and consumers using higher volumes of electricity.
KERC’s approval limits the increase below the ₹1.20 per-unit rise requested by BESCOM. The additional charge will remain in force through the stated recovery period, while eligible Gruha Jyothi consumers within the free-use limit continue to receive the exemption.
