Hike in electricity smart meter rates, a shock for consumers
It will be a little expensive and after installation, it will help the consumers to know about their electricity consumption and use it sparingly, say officials
Bengaluru: BESCOM, which has been working to make smart meters mandatory since last year, has finally issued an order in this regard, saying that the use of smart meters was made mandatory from February 15. This will be applicable to those who get new electricity connections and those who already have static meters. However, smart meters are more expensive than static meters, which has now made consumers sleepless.
Smart meters have been made mandatory in 8 districts under BESCOM, and these smart meters will also be implemented in Hescom in the coming days. There is a huge difference between the rates of the current static meters and the new smart meters. The rates of smart meters have increased by 400 to 800 percent, and smart meters are mandatory for new connections.
The price of LT single phase 2 static meter is Rs 980, while the price of smart meter is Rs 4,800. The price of LT 3 phase 4 static meter is Rs 2,430, while the price of smart meter is Rs 8,500. The price of LT 3 phase CT operated is Rs 3450 to Rs 10,900.
BESCOM has issued guidelines regarding the maintenance of this smart meter, and prepaid customers should recharge at least Rs 100 or an amount equal to the average consumption of one week. There is no limit on the maximum recharge. Apart from this, the monthly fixed fee will be deducted on the first day of the month. If the balance is zero, the connection will be disconnected. The guidelines state that an alert should be given regarding this and power should be cut between 10 am and 1 pm. Therefore, BESCOM will disconnect the connection through AMI software.
The action has been taken as per the directives of the Central Electricity Authority and the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission, and BESCOM officials are saying that this is inevitable for the consumers. Also, since the old static meter specification also has smart meter features, it will be a little expensive, and after installation, it will help the consumers to know about their electricity consumption and use it sparingly. Therefore, it remains to be seen what kind of response the consumers will get to these new smart meters of BESCOM in the coming days.
