Court tells Delhi power regulator to notify tariff hike

New Delhi, July 11 (IANS) The Delhi High Court Wednesday directed the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) to notify the recent hike in electricity tariff.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Anil Kumar asked the DERC to inform the court within a week about the publication of the new tariff order.

The power regulator recently announced an average over-20 percent hike in power tariff for homes. The new rates came into effect from July 1.

The court was hearing a petition filed by Ravinder Kumar, a member of the Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party's executive committee, who alleged that the tariff hike came into effect without a notification.

The petition said that the regulator had allowed private power distribution companies (discoms) to raise the tariff without any notification and that so far no reasons have been cited which made the hike necessary.

"The hike was against public interest and without justification and transparency," the petition said.