Power discom TPDDL prevents over 1.5 lakh manual visits for meter reading during lockdown

Power discom TPDDL prevented over 1.5 lakh manual meter-reading visits of its staff during the lockdown, safeguarding them and the consumers from possible coronavirus exposure, through around two lakh smart meters installed within its distribution area, a company spokesperson said on Sunday.

The smart meters helped raise over 3.5 lakh electricity bills based on actual readings, instead of provisional ones, during the lockdown months of April-May and prevented over 1.5 lakh visits to consumer premises, he said.

The company has installed around two lakh smart meters across its consumer segments -- domestic, industrial and commercial -- under its Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) project, the spokesperson said.

The Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) supplies electricity to a population of around 70 lakh in north and northwest Delhi. It has a registered customer base of 17 lakh.

"Smart meters not only provide detailed information about power use and consumption patterns, but also prevent manual reading, a safe practice during a pandemic, considering the health of the staff and consumers," the TPDDL spokesperson said.

With the introduction of smart meters, the consumers are now monitoring their maximum demand indicator (MDI) and power factor through the TPDDL Connect mobile application on an almost real-time basis (at a gap of four hours) and maintaining them in an efficient way while saving on the fixed and energy charges, he added.

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A close monitoring of the MDI is also helping them save about 30 per cent on load-violation charges beyond their sanctioned load, he said.

Ganesh Srinivasan, chief executive officer of TPDDL, said with the shift to smart meters, the company aims to engage and empower the consumers by providing them full control on their electricity consumption.

"Installation of smart meters is proving to be of great help during the ongoing pandemic and provides a win-win platform to both the utility and the consumers through benefits like remote meter reading, controlling power theft, reduction of losses, incentivising energy conservation and facilitating easy bill payments," he said.

In the coming days, TPDDL is also planning to send customised alerts to its consumers via text messages on the MDI and power factor variations so that they can maintain them on an almost real-time basis to reduce energy charges, the company spokesperson said. 

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