Hyderabad: The TS government opened a Pandora’s Box when it announced the creation of a separate category for power charges to be paid by hair-cutting salons belonging to Nayee Brahmins. As part of protecting hereditary professions, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao announced many sops for Nayee Brahmins, including pow-er charges. At present, hair-cutting salons come under the commercial category for paying power tariffs. But the TS government has decided to give Rs 2 per unit subsidy for consumption up to 200 units for hair-cutting salons run by Nayee Brahmins.
The two discoms accordingly included this in the tariff proposals submitted to the TS Electricity Regulatory Commission. Now, Arya Vyshy-as too are demanding that they get the same benefit. They say that their kirana business is also a hereditary profession. In rural areas, the home and shop of the Arya Vyshya owner is under the same roof. But the discoms have been collecting power charges in two categories. For the residence, the charge is in the domestic category while the kirana shop pays commercial tariff.
When the discoms proposed a new sub-category for hair-cutting salons with a consumption of upto 200 units during the hearing conducted by the Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Arya Vyshyas representatives asked the regulatory commission to extend the same benefit to Arya Vyshyas as their hereditary profession is the kirana business. The state government and Electricity Regulatory Commission will have to take a decision on this issue.
