Bhubaneswar: Distribution companies (DISCOMs) in Odisha received 1,499 complaints related to erroneous billing from smart prepaid meters during the past two years, with all complaints having been resolved, deputy chief minister and energy minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo informed the state assembly recently.
DISCOM officials inspecting a smart meter in Bhubaneswar
Replying to a question by MLA Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo, the minister said the complaints pertained to alleged inflated or incorrect billing after the installation of smart prepaid meters. “A total of 1,499 such grievances were reported across the state during the last two years and all were subsequently redressed by the DISCOMs,” he said.The disclosure comes amid concerns raised by consumers in several parts of the state over power consumption patterns and billing under the smart metering system. While the govt acknowledged the complaints, it also maintained that every reported case had been addressed.The minister also informed the assembly that smart prepaid meter installation is continuing across Odisha, with significant variation in deployment levels between districts. Khurda has recorded the highest number of installations at 36,744, followed by Ganjam with 16,304 and Cuttack with 13,964.Balangir district, specifically mentioned in the query, has so far seen the installation of 1,221 smart prepaid meters. Other districts with relatively low installations of the meters include Jajpur (606), Sonepur (576), Deogarh (476), Nuapada (455) and Keonjhar (382).However, the govt did not provide a district-wise breakup of the billing-related complaints or details on the nature of errors reported by consumers. However, the official response revealed that grievance redressal mechanisms handled all reported cases during the period under review.However, the govt did not provide a district-wise breakup of the billing-related complaints or details on the nature of errors reported by consumers. However, the official response revealed that grievance redressal mechanisms handled all reported cases during the period under review.