The smart meters that were put in place in the Kanpur area of Uttar Pradesh to stop electricity theft are now being questioned. Two of these smart meters were recently discovered in the Chamanganj region by Kesco’s raiding squad, the power department’s databases do not contain their information. This even caught the officers off guard.
According to an investigation, these meters were put approximately four years ago by EECL, a business that provided KESCO with smart meters. The department as a whole was in disarray after official data regarding these meters was not discovered.
The managing director of Kesco has asked the business for all 1.5 lakh meters’ information.During the Kesco team’s raid in the Chamanganj region last month, smart meters that were not registered in the department’s system or had any legitimate information were discovered in the homes of two businesses, Anees (a slipper businessman) and Mohammad Ahmed.
The information indicates that these meters were merely put in place for show; in fact, the customers were utilizing the electricity for free. The meters were installed by a private individual without authorization.
In addition to requesting a report from the business that installed the meters, Kesco has filed a formal complaint against these customers. However, the business was unable to offer any details about these meters.
As all the connections in this case are now being made public, there is growing fear that meters without records may have been set elsewhere. A comprehensive study of smart meters throughout Kanpur city has been initiated by KESCO in response to this grave issue.
Samuel Pal N., the managing director of Kesco, has stated that the firm has requested all customer data in order to install smart meters. However, the company may need some time to search the old documents because the case is several years old.
However, in order to preserve systemic transparency, these situations are also being looked into at the local level. The department team promptly goes to the location where there is information regarding a suspicious meter and conducts an inspection.
Officials from Kesco have stated that severe legal action will be taken against any individual, organization, or business proven to have contributed to this fraud.
