Another power price hike?

On available indications, the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) seems set to announce a 30 percent hike in power tariff effective September 1. The hike would take place both at bulk and retail levels with sweeping knock-on effects on cost of living which has already hit the roofs for an overwhelming majority of the people.
The argument for power rate hike is a stock one: the cost of electricity generation has gone up and so the subsidies would have to be cut back on for the government to reduce its borrowing. Nobody contests the rationale for pricing to be linked to costing. However, what is missing is an elaborate explanation as to the compulsion for the hikes beyond just a terse announcement followed by a ritual of so-called public hearing. Equally important, no one in authority has ever come out with a statement on any improved management of the power sector by plugging the holes of pilferage and waste so far. How many unauthorised connections have been eliminated and how much of ghost billing causing loss to PDB and distribution companies and other forms of systems loss like transmission leakages have been checkmated? These questions need to be answered, otherwise it feels like an incompetence premium charged on the public.
This would be sixth increase in power tariffs since the government came to power and the fourth in the last six months alone. Such successive increases within a short span is unheard of in any democracy. This couldn't have happened in India or for that matter any other country. The argument for staggering is diluted in the face of such galloping increases.
Then if the supplies were commensurately steadier, at least there would be some justification to put up with the hikes. But unfortunately the increase in the rates has not been followed by any marked improvement in electric supply.
The government's pattern of emphasis clearly is in need of a change.