Nashik: The state power utility’s Nashik Zone has decided to get away with the habit of making a courtesy call to the consumers before snapping their connections over unpaid dues.Within a span of just two days, a total of 4,651 consumers in the Nashik zone — comprising Nashik, Malegaon and Ahilyangar circles — learnt this the hard way.
“On Friday and Saturday, power supply to 4,651 consumers who owed outstanding of around Rs2 crore was snapped in a flash. All of these were consumers on whose premises Smart Meters were installed. Of these, about 90% came forward and settled their dues following which power supply was restored,” a senior official from the MSEDCL’s Nashik Zone said.The consumers are used to the courtesy call by the lineman, who before connecting the connection would visit the premises of those who fail to pay the bill even after the due date. “The power supply is restored only after payment of dues with penalty and reconnection charges,” the official said.The smart meters were installed by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) for over 5.7 lakh consumers, and the process is ongoing.“The new meters are equipped with an arrangement of 2-way communication between the meter and the company remotely. This ensures no need for human intervention when it comes to disconnecting and reconnecting the power, which can now be processed on a real-time basis,” said the official.Ramesh Jadhav, a resident of Ambad, said he was surprised to know that the power supply was disconnected. “This time there was no warning by the lineman. At 3.40 pm, I received a call from my family members about power failure. I tried to raise an online complaint through the mobile application but could not. After returning home from the office, I went to the MSEDCL office where I was told about the disconnection. I settled the dues and got the power supply reinstated,” he said.The power utility officials said that the power company issues notices to the consumers for not paying their dues in time by way of SMS and even email on the registered modes of communication 15 days prior to disconnection.“Similar intimation was sent this time as well. Of the 5.7 lakh consumers, only these many paid no heed to the warnings. Hence, we took action. We appeal to the consumers to be punctual about paying their power to avoid any inconvenience,” the official said.
