Harish Chauhan, an apple grower of Rohru, claims that he received an electricity bill of over Rs 17,000 in March, followed by another bill of more than Rs 6,000 in April though his shop had remained closed for
Chauhan alleged that not even one switch had been turned on during this period yet the smart meter continued to generate hefty bills. He said that he had lodged complaints with the Electricity Department twice but no corrective action had been taken so far. The meter continued to churn out unusually high bills, he alleged.
Meanwhile, the Executive Engineer, Jubbal, said that the wiring in the shop was faulty, causing electricity leakage which the meter was recording. “We had informed the consumer of this problem months ago. The department is not responsible for wiring at his shop,” he added.
Chauhan, however, said that the problem started only after a smart meter was installed on his premises. “I received a monthly bill of Rs 6,000 in April. There could be a leakage of a few units but how could there be a leakage of 1,000 units in a small shop,”
The installation of smart meters has been a contentious issue, as complaints of inflated bills and the lack of transparency have surfaced from time to time. Widespread protests were held in Kangra over smart meters some time ago. Many people see the introduction of smart meters as an attempt to privatise power distribution function of the electricity board. “The Central Government wants to privatise the electricity board and the installation of smart meters is part of that attempt,” said Sanjay Chauhan, state secretary, CPM.
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