Govt seeks additional funds from Centre for smart meter project

SHILLONG, Nov 12: Power Minister AT Mondal has sought additional funds for the smart meter project under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) from the Union Ministry of Power to avoid any adverse impact on consumers.
He also sought financial assistance from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) for small hydropower projects in the state.
Mondal attended a conference of the power ministers of all the states chaired by Union Power Minister Manohar Lal in New Delhi on Tuesday. The focus was on issues related to the progress of RDSS, implementation of the Rights of Consumer Rules, PM Surya Ghar Yojna, resource adequacy, and development of pumped storage projects, etc.
During the meeting, the states updated Lal on the progress on various fronts and highlighted the key issues they are facing.
Mondal also apprised Lal of the progress under RDSS and raised specific issues about the implementation of the Smart Meter Scheme.
He told the Union Power Minister that the discovered cost of a smart meter is much higher than the sanctioned cost although the amount discovered is almost at par with other states in the Northeast. He requested Lal to increase the subsidy amount per meter as the burden of the additional cost would either be passed on to the consumer or borne by the utility.
Mondal said the state has received proposals for pumped storage projects in Meghalaya with a cumulative capacity of 4,800 MW. Since the tariff of these projects is likely to be very high, he requested that the Ministry of Power consider some benefits such as free power to the state.
On renewable energy, Mondal said there are several small hydro projects for which the DPR has been completed and the development of these projects can be started immediately. However, the state lacks funds.
He said the MNRE may consider restarting the stopped central financial assistance of Rs 7.5 crore per MW for the development of small hydro projects so that smaller states like Meghalaya can benefit from it.
The MNRE Secretary said a meeting would be conducted in Shillong on November 27 and 28 to discuss specific issues related to the northeastern states.