Srinagar: As part of reforming the power sector, the Jammu and Kashmir government is in the process of installing 1 lakh smart meters each in Jammu and Kashmir by March next year, Chief Secretary, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta said Monday.
Mehta disclosed these details during a high-level meeting chaired by the Union Home Secretary, Ajay Kumar Bhalla with the Chief Secretaries of the Union Territories to review the progress of Smart Metering and power sector reforms, an official spokesperson said.
At the outset, he said, the Ministry of Power gave a detailed presentation on progress achieved on Smart Metering in the UTs. He said it was informed that the installation of Smart Meters shall lead to considerable reduction in losses due to improvement in billing and collection efficiency.
“The Union Home Secretary observed that implementation of reforms under ‘Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme’ needs to be expedited to improve quality and reliability of power supply to consumers and put in place a financially and operationally efficient distribution sector,” he added.
According to the official spokesperson, the meeting was informed that a total of 20 lakh smart meters will be installed in Jammu and Kashmir. While installation of 8 lakh smart meters in J&K has been sanctioned under PMDP/DDUGJY&IPDS, the remaining 12 lakh meters, he said, will be sanctioned under the ‘Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme’ for which the requisite preparatory work is currently underway.
“It was informed that IT hardware has been supplied and installed in Data Centre in Srinagar and Data Recovery Centre in Jammu, besides integrating the system with utility billing system,” he said.
“It was further informed that user acceptance testing is presently underway and shall be completed by 16.10.2021,” he added.
As per the official spokesperson, J&K Chief Secretary informed that out of 10600 meters supplied, 5000 meters have been installed as on date.
“He assured that the Government is on course towards installing 1 lakh meter each in Jammu and Kashmir by March 2022,” he said.
Mehta, he said, further observed that if installation of smart meters could be completed in the cities of Jammu and Srinagar, the UT would have more or less achieved the targets set forth under the Schemes as most of the power is consumed in these two capital cities.
The official spokesperson said that the Union Home Secretary while agreeing with Mehta’s observation, advised him to extend full support to the executing agencies for timely achievements of the milestones in the Schemes.
“Mehta assured that the Government of Jammu & Kashmir will fully support the executing agencies in their efforts to meet the project timelines,” he added.
Earlier, the Chief Secretary, as per the official spokesperson, also participated in a meeting chaired by Bhalla to consider resumption of foreign travel to India on tourist visa.
He said Mehta welcomed the idea of resuming foreign tourism before the winter season and said the COVID situation in Jammu and Kashmir is by and large under control and that subject to Covid protocols, foreign travelers can be allowed to visit J&K if they possess double jab certificate and have taken RTPCR test during the last 72 hours.
He further said that Mehta stated that allowing entry of foreign travelers in J&K would not be a problem, especially as around 90 % of the people associated with tourism and hospitality sectors have already been vaccinated with at least one dose.
“Resumption of travel by foreign tourists will provide much needed succour to the UT’s tourism industry, which has been severely impacted by the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic. J&K would welcome foreign tourists particularly in the winter as several activities are being planned during the upcoming winter season in Gulmarg and other scenic winter spots in UT”, Mehta said, as per official spokesperson.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
