In this modern era of advanced technology, it is truly surprising and concerning to find that a staggering 9.6 lakh electricity meters installed by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) throughout the state are not functioning properly.
This fact has been revealed in the official MSEDCL report. Unfortunately, it is the ordinary people who suffer the most from this situation, as MSEDCL fails to rectify the billing even after identifying the problem. As a result, customers are forced to pay their bills based on inaccurate meter readings.
Lokesh Chandra, the newly appointed chairman and managing director of MSEDCL. will meet with the company's senior officers across the state for the first time on Tuesday after taking over the reins. During this time, the condition of the meters will be evaluated.
MSEDCL employees are reluctant to replace the faulty meters due to a shortage of meters. This has led many consumers to purchase meters from the black market at double the price. However, MSEDCL is fulfilling its responsibility by identifying and marking the meters as defective.
In the Vidarbha region, Nagpur division alone has 2.25 lakh such faulty meters. Specifically, the Nagpur zone has 25,000 defective meters, Gondia has 12,000, Chandrapur has 29,000, Amravati has 80,000, and Akola has 78,000.
Faulty meters are causing a financial burden for customers. It's important to note that if the meter reading is not done, customers receive an average bill that is usually higher than their actual usage. When a meter malfunctions, any excess amount is not adjusted in the subsequent bill after the reading.
Customers are billed based on the average amount, even after a new meter is installed, without any correction. Essentially, the company treats the inaccurate meter reading as accurate. MSEDCL claims that the availability of meters has been consistent. With approximately three crore subscribers in total, only 3% of meters have errors. The company replaces around 2 lakh meters every month and requires additional meters for new connections.
Division - Faulty meters
- Nagpur - 2.25 lakh
- Aurangabad - 2.43 lakh
- Konkan - 3.28 lakh
- Pune - 1.63 Lakh