DGVCL to start public awareness campaign to remove ‘misconceptions’

He added that DGVCL will hold an awareness drive in Surat to remove misconception about smart meters and also explain its benefits.

Chaudhary said that since April, when DGVCL had started installing smart meters in Surat, over 12,000 smart meters have been installed. In the next one-and-a-half years, over 17 to 18 lakh smart meters are to be installed.

Explaining the benefits of smart meters, Choudhary said, “Sometimes, due to human error, consumers receive inflated bills. This will not happen in case of smart meters. This will also help DGVCL in tracking power thefts.”

“Also, we are thinking that in an apartment or society, which has 100 meters, we will replace all with smart meters except five. This will help consumers to understand meter readings in both scenarios. We will also give allow consumers to pay pending bills,” he added.

Meanwhile, Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL), the state government-owned power distribution company that distributes power to around 60 lakh consumers across Saurashtra, Kutch and parts of north Gujarat, said on Saturday that it will install 23.66 lakh smart meters at a cost of Rs 2,000 crore in the first phase.

R J Vala, Chief Engineer (Technical) of PGVCL, told mediapersons that around 10,000 smart meters have already been installed. He added that smart meters are being installed for consumers having low-tension power connections only and that for now, consumers having high-tension power connections and agricultural connections are not being covered under the scheme.

He also clarified that PGVCL is not billing consumers twice post installation of smart meters. “That is a misunderstanding. We bill consumers in a two-monthly cycle. If we install smart meter for consumers during this cycle, we bill consumers for the period already covered in this cycle and give them the option of paying in post-paid mode for the amount of electricity consumed so far. Then, consumers have to recharge the account for the new meter. So, there is no double billing,” said Vala.