Only one tubelight out of two is switched on, a section of an area lying dark, vacant and with a non-functioning air conditioner above. This isn't out of a thriller but what you might see when you next visit a shopping mall, thanks to the hike in electricity tariffs.

Malls face the heat
With Mumbai facing a shortage of 600 Mw, shopping malls and complexes are facing the heat. They have approached the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) against a decision to shift them from a slab with a lower rate to a higher rate.

A year back, malls were paying around Rs 6 per unit, which was charged to commercial shops and outlets by the power companies. But MERC decided to hike the tariffs to Rs 11 per unit on the basis that malls and multiplexes use more but pay less.

Organisations like Inorbit Mall, Globus Stores, Hypercity Retail and Hardcastle Restaurants that run the famous chain of McDonalds are some of the aggrieved parties opposing this proposal.