Smart meters flawless, snag won’t repeat: EESL
The EESL submitted the compliance report in this regard to UPPCL last week.
LUCKNOW: Amid all-round brouhaha over the quality of smart meters with none other than energy minister Shrikant Sharma raising questions, the Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL), a Central government enterprise implementing the Smart Meter National Programme in the country, has claimed hi-tech meters are technically flawless.
The company has also said it has taken all necessary steps to ensure that smart meters functioned smoothly and incidents like one that happened on the day of Janmasthami on August 12 when around two lakh smart meters got disconnected simultaneously did not repeat in future.
The EESL submitted the compliance report in this regard to the UP Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) last week. The UPPCL is now examining the claims before it takes any further action on the issue.
“We have received the compliance report from the EESL and have forwarded the same to the technical committee headed by the Lucknow discom managing director asking it to examine the report before we take the final call on the matter,” additional chief secretary (energy) cum UPPCL chairman, Arvind Kumar disclosed.
The bulk disconnection of meters, according to him, happened due an L&T staff (EESL has outsources some functions to the L&T) giving a command to disconnect some defaulters’ supply through the HES end probably because their backend was not working at that time.
“Disconnection of smart meters from the HES end was technically wrong though it was not done with a malafide intention,” he said. Kumar also said the Special Task Force (STF) that also investigated the bulk disconnection issue did not find evidence of any sabotage or any other foul play.
In the compliance report, the EESL has said it had made some software changes that will ensure that power to no smart meter is disconnected in case of default by a consumer without prior authorization by the UPPCL unlike it happened on August 12 when not only defaulters’ but other consumers’ supply was disconnected across the state due a technical mistake.
“Now, we have ensured that no disconnection will be possible from the HES end and without prior command by the UPPCL,” EESL managing director, Saurabh Kumar told the HT over phone. “Second we have ensured
99% billing efficiency which mean bills will be generated automatically and remotely without anyone having to walk to a consumer’s residence to read smart meter and third meters once disconnected will get auto connected as soon as a consumer clears his dues,” he said. The next important point that the EESL has mentioned in the compliance report is that it has claimed a random lab test of smart meters, the state-of-the-art meters, to be technically sound with no complaints about their recording excess power demand or units.
“The EESL and the UPPCL jointly sent eight and 28 smart meters randomly to the Central Power Research Institute, Bhopal to get them tested to find out if there was anything wrong with them technically,” Kumar said, adding, “But all the sample meters were found to be healthy.”
UP Electricity Regulatory Commission (UPERC) chairman, RP Singh who had sought a report from the UPPCL on the alleged malfunctioning and the bulk disconnection of smart meters said these meters did have some issues since they were based on a new technology and were being installed in India the first time.
“But the solution lies not in discarding smart meters but in rectify their shortcomings with the time and experience,” he suggested, adding, “The commission, is however, yet to examine the UPPCL’s response.”