Nitish Kumar Reviews Progress on Smart Pre-paid Meters and Energy Initiatives in Bihar
Bihar Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar did a high-level review of the Energy Department at 'Sankalp' located at 1 Anne Marg. During this, he took information about the updated status of smart pre-paid meters and gave necessary guidelines to the officials.
During the review, the Secretary of the Energy Department, Shri Pankaj Kumar Pal informed the Chief Minister about the updated status of the works of the Energy Department through a presentation. Also, giving information regarding smart pre-paid meters, he said that so far 50.23 lakh smart pre-paid meters have been installed in the state, out of which 17.47 lakh have been installed in urban areas, while 32.76 lakh smart pre-paid meters have been installed in rural areas. The remaining smart meters will also be installed by the year 2025. Apart from the subsidy given by the state government on using smart pre-paid meters, a financial benefit of 3 percent is available on recharge. Consumers can see the amount of daily consumption and energy charged in the smart meter. With the use of smart pre-paid meters, the consumer is always aware of energy consumption, which saves energy. The state government is giving a subsidy of Rs 15,343 crore on electricity consumption.
During the review, the Chief Minister said that electricity has been provided to all the houses in the year 2018. Uninterrupted electricity is being supplied to everyone. The state government is spending money as a subsidy for consumers on electricity consumption so that the people of the state can get cheap electricity. The government is sensitive to solving the problems of the people and is continuously working to provide them with facilities. If any kind of complaint is received from the consumers, solve it immediately. Smart pre-paid meters not only save electricity consumption but also provide convenience to people in paying electricity bills. If any complaint of technical error is received in this, then solve it immediately.
The Chief Minister said that everyone knows what was the condition of electricity in the state before the year 2005. Since coming to power, many steps have been taken to provide electricity to the people. Some people are spreading misconceptions about smart pre-paid meters. When they were in power after independence till 2005, they had brought Bihar to a very bad state in terms of electricity. On 15 August 2012, during my Independence Day speech at Gandhi Maidan, I had promised that if the power situation is not improved, I will not come among the people to ask for votes in the 2015 assembly elections. We made the promise and fulfilled it to the letter by providing electricity to every household. People should not be confused by those who are spreading false propaganda and rumours. He said that by running a campaign among the people, they should tell them about the benefits of smart pre-paid meters and work with full readiness to solve the problems of consumers. All the District Magistrates should also make people aware and motivate them regarding the benefits of smart pre-paid meters.
The Chief Minister said that we have promoted the use of solar energy. Solar plates have been installed on the roofs of all government buildings. Solar street lights are being installed in all villages and hamlets so that people can get light even at night and there is no inconvenience in commuting. Agricultural feeders are being installed for farmers so that farmers can get cheap and uninterrupted electricity and they do not face any inconvenience in irrigation work. Deputy Chief Minister Mr. Samrat Chaudhary, Energy Minister Mr. Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Mr. Deepak Kumar, Chief Secretary Mr. Amrit Lal Meena, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Dr. S. Siddharth, Secretary of Energy Department Mr. Pankaj Kumar Pal, Secretary to Chief Minister Mr. Anupam Kumar, Secretary to Chief Minister Mr. Kumar Ravi, Special Officer to Chief Minister Mr. Gopal Singh, Managing Director of North Bihar Power Distribution Company Mr. Nilesh Devde and other senior officers and engineers of Energy Department were present in the meeting.
