BEST suspends smart electricity meter installation for residential users in island city

Mumbai: Following public outcry and opposition from activists and politicians regarding smart electricity meters, a senior BEST official announced on Wednesday that the undertaking has suspended the installation of smart electricity meters for all residential consumers in the island city, spanning from Colaba/Cuffe Parade to Sion/Mahim.The official stated that a decision will soon be made regarding the existing smart meters installed in the past few months, and a meeting of officials will be convened in this regard.BEST serves a total consumer base of 10.8 lakh electricity users in the island city, of which 6.5 lakh are residential consumers. To date, nearly 3 lakh smart meters have been installed for both residential and commercial consumers collectively, the official revealed.MLA Amin Patel, who had petitioned BEST on smart meters, met senior officials in the undertaking on Wednesday. "They have given me in writing that smart meter installations are suspended for residential users. We also want additional security deposits to be withdrawn," he said.Consumer activist Kamlakar Shenoy welcomed the suspension of smart meters but emphasised that it should be extended to both residential and commercial users, as they are all common citizens. He cited deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis's statement during the last monsoon session of the state legislature, asserting that "no smart meters will be installed at present for common citizens." Shenoy stressed that this should be strictly adhered to in Mumbai.Furthermore, Shenoy pointed out that all existing smart meters installed in the past few months were "illegal" and should be promptly replaced with the previous electronic meters.A senior official denied that smart meters led to an increase in meter readings and proposed a novel solution for commercial users. The plan is to install smart meters while simultaneously retaining the old conventional meters in the meter cabin, allowing users to cross-check the readings from both meters and verify if the smart meter readings are indeed inflated. This approach aims to address the doubts and apprehensions in the minds of consumers and boost their confidence in the new smart meters.The official further highlighted that smart meters help reduce power thefts and save money for consumers when they opt for Time of the Day (ToD) tariff. With ToD tariff, consumers can switch to non-peak hours where the consumption cost per unit is lower compared to peak hours, and they can easily track their consumption patterns through an app connected to the smart meter.GRAPHICS# What is a smart meter— Smart meters are digital devices that collect and transmit real-time data about energy consumption. This technology allows consumers to track energy usage, save money through efficient energy management, and even remotely control appliances# Cost— Smart meters are not charged initially at the time of installation, which means one does not have to pay anything upfront at the point of purchase— They are offered— under govt scheme designed to get all homes connected to a smart meter— The actual cost is absorbed by everyone's energy bills. The costs are included while presenting the capital expenditure to the MERC in the next multi-year tariff petition— Sources said that market costs could be as high as Rs 12,000 per meter.# Customer benefits— You can check consumption on an hourly, daily or monthly basis. You will also be able to know your projected monthly usage and compare your monthly usage with that of the last 12 months and can also compare your consumption with your peers or neighbours— Prepaid smart meters allow customers to see their energy usage in real time, which can help them to budget more effectively and lead to lower energy bills. You can opt for ‘Time of the Day' tariff in the near future wherein you can opt for energy consumption during particular hours when tariff is low (low peak demand) and save on energy bills.— You can get alerts for abnormal electricity usage at home so that you can optimise power consumption# Discom benefits— Reduced theft: Prepaid smart meters can help reduce electricity theft, as customers can only use energy for which they have paid. — Improved efficiency: Prepaid smart meters can help discoms improve the efficiency of their networks. By being able to monitor energy usage in real time, discoms can identify and fix problems more quickly. This can lead to fewer outages — Reduces electricity distribution lossesQuote"Smart meters will compel people to pay bills. We can remotely switch off a smart meter at residence for a repeated payment defaulter, and once paid, we can remotely switch it on — with zero manual interference," an official from a power utility said.
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