A committed constituted by the Delhi government has recommended that the chairman of the Delhi’s power regulator, P D Sudhakar. and two other members, J P Singh and B P Singh be removed.
The committee concluded that they had ‘failed to protect the interests of the consumers.’
According to news agency PTI, the one-member committee of former Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chief Berjinder Singh was tasked by the AAP government to publish a white paper on the capital’s power sector.
In a damning report, the committee felt that when the power tariff should have been slashed between 2011 and 2013, the DERC hiked it several times overlooking consumers’ interest.
Alleging ‘omission’ the committee recommended “action for removal of the chairman and members who were parties to the tariff orders passed in the years 2011 to 2013.”
The DERC under Berjinder Singh as chairman in May 2010 had proposed slashing of power tariff by 23 per cent citing healthy financial condition of the private power distribution companies but the move was stalled by the then Congress government exercising a special power under Delhi Electricity Act.
“There should have been a case for reduction in electricity tariff during the years 2011 to 2013,” said the report according to the PTI, which said that the it will soon be discussed by Delhi cabinet.
In June, Delhi government had written to the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission requesting it to reconsider it decision to hike power tariff on June 12, 2015.
A three page letter written by the power secretary in Delhi government, Sukesh Kumar Jain had said that ” I’m directed to request the DERC to kindly review its order dated 12.06.2015 and withdraw PPAC (Purchase Cost Adjustment Charge) adjustment in public interest.”
The power tariff in the national capital was hiked by up to six per cent by the DERC as it restored a surcharge to compensate the private electricity distribution companies for rise in power purchase cost.