Oil companies should increase diesel prices in phases otherwise inflation will escalate further, industry body Assocham said today.

Welcoming the government's decision to allow oil marketing companies to hike diesel rates, the chamber said that "oil companies should pass be on the burden in phases otherwise the inflation will escalate and may become unacceptable to the masses".

Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat in a statement said that the government should have a seven-year time bound programme to phase out all avoidable subsidies and make the plan transparent.

Diesel prices in all probability may be hiked by Rs 1.50-2.0 per litre in the first instance that can be as early as tonight following the decision taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Price of diesel was last revised on September 14 when it was hiked by a steep Rs 5.63 per litre. At present, diesel costs Rs 47.15 per litre in Delhi.