J&K leads in carrying out power reforms

Jammu, July 6

Jammu and Kashmir has emerged as a trailblazer in reforming its electricity sector, addressing long-standing legacy issues to a large extent to ensure enhanced service delivery to consumers. A significant milestone has been achieved through the modernisation initiative, replacing obsolete meters with state-of-the-art smart meters.

These advanced technologies promise error-free billing, eliminating human errors and outdated manual systems. They also empower consumers by providing better control over electricity usage and budget management, alongside other benefits like streamlined billing and payment processes.

According to the latest data from the National Power Portal (NPP) managed by the Government of India, J&K has secured a place among the top seven states/UTs with over 500,000 smart meters successfully installed in consumer residences. Other states leading in smart meter installations according to the NPP include Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam. J&K has set a definitive plan to achieve 100% smart metering by 2026, with contracts already awarded.

“Efforts to ensure affordable electricity tariffs for consumers have been equally prioritised, with substantial subsidies being provided by the government on the full cost tariff evaluated based on the current price of power procurement and other actual distribution companies expenses approved by the JERC. Notably, J&K refrained from increasing electricity tariffs during the current financial year (2024-25). In the previous year (2023-24), while metered consumers faced a 15% tariff hike, the government offset this increase by withdrawing the 15% electricity duty on energy charges, resulting in no net rise in consumer bills,” he said.

However, Power Department was still facing losses as most of the consumers were being charged flat rate in the Valley. The spokesperson revealed that only 32 per cent of the power consumers in Kashmir region were metered.

“There is grave concern over the high number of unmetered areas still prevalent in Kashmir. These areas contribute to substantial energy losses, exacerbated by the fact that only 32% of residential consumers are metered and are being billed as per actual metered consumption. The remaining 68% of residential consumers are charged on a flat-rate (fixed charges) basis,” the spokesperson said.

As such, the J&K administration bears a huge burden in maintaining the financial stability of the sector, which is crucial for securing grants from the Centre to upgrade power infrastructure. In monetary terms, it is estimated that for every unit sold to metered consumers, the government bears a loss of approximately Rs 3.75, by providing subsidy, the spokesperson said.