Prepaid and smart metering for electricity
Minister of Power and New & Renewable energy R.K Singh has said that in the next three years electricity metering will go smart and prepaid. He has also asked the manufacturers to scale up manufacturing of smart prepaid meters and to work towards bringing down their prices.
Why the Pitch for Smart meters?
The Power Ministry is pushing for smart prepaid meters for the following reasons:
- Smart and pre-paid metering will aid in making state utilities more efficient and bringing down their losses in the past.
- It will incentivise energy conservation.
- Maintaining the better financial health of DISCOMs.
- Enhancing the ease of bill payments.
- Reducing AT&C losses.
The minister has assured the smart meter manufacturers of steady demand as the government is planning to make smart metering mandatory after a particular date. On a pilot basis, the prepaid meters are being deployed in Uttar Pradesh as part of the Saubhagya scheme which aims to electrify over four crore households till December this year.
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Month: Current Affairs - December, 2018