The State has installed more than 1.5 crore meters through MSEDCL, BEST, Adani Electricity, Tata Power and Torrent Power (file photo)
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Maharashtra’s smart-meter rollout is facing a Statewide consumer backlash over alleged forced installations, inadequate notice and sharply higher bills, with complaints emerging from Mumbai, the MMR, Pune and Nagpur.The State has installed more than 1.5 crore meters through MSEDCL, BEST, Adani Electricity, Tata Power and Torrent Power. Utilities describe installation messages as courtesy notices before brief power interruptions. Consumers, however, are questioning consent, billing, data privacy and the impact of the new technology.The rollout is part of the Centre’s ₹3.03-lakh-crore Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, or RDSS, which seeks to modernise electricity distribution, reduce losses and narrow the gap between the cost of supplying power and revenue collected. Maharashtra plans to replace about 2.4 crore meters.Why the rollout has become contentiousResidents in Matunga, Vile Parle, Byculla, Vashi, Thane and other parts of the MMR received messages giving them 48 hours before installation teams arrived.Activists associated with consumer campaigner Kamlakar Shenoy allege that meters are being replaced without explicit written consent or sufficient individual notice, citing Sections 171 and 47(5) of the Electricity Act, 2003.More than 120 residents from Thane, Vashi, Virar and elsewhere in the MMR have participated in awareness drives and collected over 100 written complaints, according to citizen groups.Billing concerns have intensified the anger. A video from Kalyan’s Palava housing complex appeared to show a daily electricity bill of ₹1,70,700. Residents of Rohan Abhilasha Society in Pune’s Lohegaon-Wagholi area allege that bills rose two to three times after smart meters were installed. They are demanding an investigation and, in some cases, restoration of old meters.Government rejects overcharging claimsResponding to a calling-attention motion in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, Minister of State for Energy Meghna Sakore-Bordikar said replacing conventional meters with smart meters was legally mandatory under the Electricity Act and Central Electricity Authority regulations. She clarified that prepaid billing remained voluntary.Bordikar said more than 1.23 crore smart meters had been installed statewide, and MSEDCL had received around 3.92 lakh complaints, or about 4%. She said check-meter verification showed that almost all claims of inflated bills were unsubstantiated.The minister said consumers could receive an 85-paise-per-unit discount for electricity used during daytime solar hours, between 9 am and 5 pm. She also announced ₹120 crore for distribution-box maintenance and ₹1,100 crore for underground cables.Discoms have separately said that higher readings may reflect the replacement of defective conventional meters, including “zero meters” that recorded little or no consumption despite active use.What changes with a smart meterA smart meter transmits usage information automatically, allowing the discom to record readings remotely, identify outages, detect possible tampering and provide consumers with real-time data through a mobile application.
