HYC launches anti-smart meter campaign, demands govt to come clear

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaMarch 13, 2021

The Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) has launched a campaign against the state government’s move to introduce a smart metering system in the state.

Pamphlets were distributed to residents of the state capital starting from Mawlai area on Saturday.

The objective of the campaign is to make the citizens of the state well-informed about the pros and cons of the project.

Activists of the HYC were seen distributing the pamphlets to people from Mawlai Polytechnic to Stand Bus.

Speaking to media persons, HYC general secretary Roykupar Synrem has appealed to the people of the state to oppose the project for installation of over 2 lakh smart meters so long as the government is yet to come clear on the issue.

“Even the legislators should also oppose this move till the state government is ready to enlighten the need to implement such project,” he said.  

Demanding the power minister James K Sangma to address the concerns, Synrem said majority of the people in the state are yet to know the purpose of installing these smart meters.

According to him, but people are continuing to complaint against irregularities regarding the power supply and issuing of electricity bills.

Stating that there is a big confusion about the price of the smart meters, Synrem said, “Although the power minister had recently appraised the Assembly that the cost for installation of one smart meter will not be more than Rs 4,000 but the price quoted by the Satnam Global Infraprojects Limited, which will be implementing the project, was at Rs 9,000.”  

He added, “Confusion is also there with regards to the maintenance cost in case of the smart meters becoming malfunctioned. Nothing is clear on this.”

Moreover, the HYC leader said implementation of the project will only burden the MeECL as it will have to repay the loan on its own. “This means that the MeECL will have to increase the power tariff from the consumers who are citizens of the state to clear this loan,” he added.