The Himachal Pradesh government has imposed an additional electricity cess of ₹1 per unit on several categories of commercial consumers across the state. The new levy has come into effect immediately following a notification issued by the state Energy Department.
Under the notification, the additional cess will be charged on electricity consumed by 10 categories of establishments, including hotels, private hospitals, petrol pumps, shopping malls and multiplexes. The Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited (HPSEBL) has been directed to collect the cess from the notified consumers.
The order has been issued under Section 3-B of the Himachal Pradesh Electricity Duty Act, 2009. The government stated that the decision has been taken in the public interest and for strengthening the power sector in the state.
The categories covered under the new cess include business houses and commercial buildings, private offices, private hospitals, petrol pumps, hotels and motels, private nursing homes, private research institutions, private coaching institutes, shopping malls and multiplexes.
The latest levy comes amid a series of additional cess charges introduced on electricity consumers in Himachal Pradesh over the past year. Since February 2025, consumers have already been paying ‘Milk Cess’ and ‘Environment Cess’ through electricity bills.
Following the implementation of those charges, domestic consumers witnessed an increase of 10 paise per unit in electricity tariffs, while consumers in other categories faced hikes ranging from 2 paise to ₹6 per unit. These charges were introduced under the Electricity Duty Amendment Act, 2024, passed during the Monsoon Session of the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha.
At present, domestic consumers are required to pay only the Milk Cess, while all other categories pay both the Milk Cess and the Environment Cess. Consumers receiving zero-value electricity bills have been exempted from the Milk Cess.
Earlier in December 2025, the state government had also imposed a cess of ₹2 per unit on electricity consumption by institutions associated with the banking, finance and insurance sectors.
