Delhi’s residents face an astronomical jump in their electricity bills after the Supreme Court ordered the Capital’s electricity regulator to allow a payment of about ₹20,000 crore in accumulated dues to two private power distribution companies (discoms), at least three state government officials have said, adding that the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) will soon approach the apex court for a re-examination.
The matter pertains to how tariffs have been fixed for two private companies — BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL) and BSES Yamuna Power Limited (BYPL) — in a dispute stretching back 17-18 years. DERC, which lays down the per unit costs, had disallowed certain expenses when setting the power tariff. This was contested by the discoms, who got favourable verdicts.