Countries should jointly fight maritime crimes: Dharmendra Pradhan
Bhubaneswar, June 8 : Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said East Asian countries should work together to deal with the insecurities associated with maritime terrorism and crimes including trafficking of humans and drugs.
"The regional countries should work together to deal with the insecurities associated with maritime terrorism, maritime crimes, including trafficking of humans and drugs; the smuggling of small arms, other light weapons and weapons of mass destruction," Pradhan told the 3rd East Asia Summit (EAS) conference on maritime security and cooperation here.
He said countries must adhere to the freedom of navigation and over-flight and the other related internationally lawful uses of the sea and the peaceful settlement of maritime territorial disputes in accordance with the established principles of international law.
The contemporary maritime security discourse highlights a significant rise in threats at sea, particularly from non-state actors, said Pradhan.
"The ASEAN-India Maritime Transport Agreement (AIMTA), which is presently under negotiation, would help improve access to maritime services through greater transparency in maritime regulations, policies and practices of trading partners; facilitating the flow of commercial goods at sea and at ports," the Minister said.
India, being an important member of EAS, has been playing a key role in the three pillars of culture, commerce and connectivity, he added.
Pradhan said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed India's key role in maritime security and cooperation for strengthening the Indo-Pacific.
"Sea lanes of communications are the lifeline to our energy and global commerce, in general. We need to ensure that the global oil transportation and trade routes remain peaceful and free for all. It must also be our endeavour to revive and energize ancient maritime links in a contemporary setting," he said.
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Power tariffs under BESCOM to rise from May 1
Bengaluru (PTI): Power bills for consumers under the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) will go up from May 1, following an order issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) on Friday.
The hike comes after KERC allowed the BESCOM to recover a revenue deficit of Rs 2,068 crore incurred in 2024-25, from the consumers.
As a result, for every unit of electricity consumed in 2024-25, the customers will be charged an additional 56 paise, it said.
"BESCOM shall calculate, for each of the active consumers of FY2024-25 the amount to be recovered based on their actual energy consumption during FY2024-25. Such amount shall be recovered during FY 2026-27 in equal monthly instalments, to be called as 'FY25 True up Charges', commencing from the first meter reading date falling on or after 1 May 2026 and concluding with the reading date ending on 30 April 2027," the order said.
"It is further ordered that BESCOM shall maintain a separate head of account, allocated for the purpose, to record the adjustment of the said amount to ensure full recovery of the deficit," it added.
Similarly Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESC) has also recorded a revenue deficit of Rs 121.71 crore and can collect an additional 15 paisa per unit for consumption in 2024-25, official sources said.
