The Goa government on Friday executed a dramatic halt to its controversial smart me ter programme, with Chief Min ister Pramod Sawant announc ing that the rollout has been put on hold amid mounting public anger over inflated electricity bills, sanctioned-load penalties and allegations that consumers were being pushed into a sys tem they neither understood nor wanted. The decision marks the first major acknowledgment by the gov ernment that the implementation of smart meters and related billing practices had triggered widespread distrust among consumers across the State. For months, residents, activists, opposition leaders and even rul ing-party legislators had raised con cerns that the Electricity Depart ment was pressing ahead with smart meter installation despite growing resistance and confusion over its implications.
Announcing the decision on Friday evening, Sawant said the smart meter rollout would remain suspended until the Electricity Department completes a statewide verification of electricity connections, sanctioned loads and disputed bills. Consumers who have received unusually high bills or penalties have been asked to approach their respective Assistant Engineer or Executive Engineer offices for veri fication and rechecking. In a significant relief to consumers, the Chief Minister advised people not to pay disputed bills until verification is completed and assured that no electricity connections would be disconnected on account of contested or unusually high bills during this period. The government has also ordered a comparison of sanc tioned electrical loads with actual consumption patterns before proceeding further with smart meter implementa tion. According to Sawant, consumers whose actual usage exceeds their sanctioned load will first be informed and given an opportunity to regularise their connections.
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Pen alties, he said, would be imposed only if consumers fail to enhance their sanctioned load after receiving official no tice. The climbdown comes after months of criticism that the government and Electricity Department were attempting to impose smart meters without adequately informing consumers about their consequences, particularly the shift towards prepaid billing and the possibility of auto matic disconnection in the event of insufficient balance. Citizen groups that spearheaded the campaign against smart meters described the Chief Minister’s decision as a vindication of their stand. Citizens for Democracy convenor Elvis Gomes said the reversal was inevitable. “Well, the writing was on the wall.
We in February this year started as a voice in the wilderness. But I must say that a thousand people backed us and we took it forward relentlessly. I even came under severe pressure to back track. I was firm that the law was on our side,” Gomes said. Questioning the role of the Electricity Department and Power Minister Sudin Dhavalikar, Gomes alleged that the government had ignored even the Centre’s clarification on the issue. “Despite the Union Minister’s reply in the Lok Sabha on April 2 that smart meter installation was optional, the Electricity Department, with the backing of Power Min ister Sudin Dhavalikar, allowed the private company Digi Smart a free run,” he said. Gomes demanded an investigation into the entire epi sode, alleging that consumers were never clearly informed that the new system would require advance payment be fore electricity could be consumed. “I demand an investigation into the whole matter as to how the law was sought to be circumvented by the Minis ter when he had said that smart meters were mandatory. They never told the people of Goa that they had to pay first before using electricity. Those who installed smart meters received inflated bills,” Gomes alleged. The anti-smart meter campaign also credited sustained media scrutiny for bringing the issue into the public do main. Amar Gaonkar, spokesperson of the Smart Meters Naka campaign, said an O Heraldo report highlighting the government’s push for mandatory smart meters had helped trigger institutional scrutiny. “The O Heraldo report titled ‘Govt’s mandatory smart meter push sparks revolt’, which caught the attention of the Goa Human Rights Commission, was an important milestone in our fight against smart meters being forced on the people of Goa,” he said. Opposition leaders, however, dismissed the Chief Min ister’s intervention as a belated political exercise aimed at containing public anger rather than addressing its root causes.
Advocate Amit Palekar termed the announcement a “political gimmick” and questioned why the government had failed to educate consumers before introducing the programme. “The government woke up only after the Opposition raised its voice. Why was no awareness or sensitisation campaign conducted before the installation of smart me ters?” Palekar asked, adding that the episode exposed di visions within the ruling alliance itself. The controversy had also exposed visible cracks within the government. Earlier in the day, Power Min ister Sudin Dhavalikar, who had consistently defended the department’s position on sanctioned-load penal ties and smart meters, refused to comment on the is sue when questioned by reporters, saying only, “Ask the Chief Minister.” The terse response assumed significance because Cab inet colleague Digambar Kamat had already revealed that he had spoken directly to the Chief Minister regard ing public complaints and had been assured that the govement would examine the matter. Gajanan Tilve of Anjuna said the government’s de cision should be followed by concrete relief meas ures. “We had been demand ing the rollback of the penalties imposed by the Electricity Depart ment. The increased bill amounts paid should now be adjusted in consumers’ future bills,” Tilve said. Describing the smart meter initiative as “noth ing short of fraud and ex tortion”, Tilve alleged that many consumers had been pushed into financial dis tress by exorbitant elec tricity bills. “It is encouraging that the government has final ly taken public sentiment into account.
While this is a small victory for con sumers, our fight against what we perceive as the government’s injustices and anti-people policies will continue,” he said. The Chief Minister ac knowledged that the veri fication exercise would be a lengthy process because lakhs of electricity con nections across Goa would have to be examined. The exercise will begin with commercial and industrial con sumers before being extended to residential users. Con sumers who have already paid penalties have also been permitted to seek verification of their connections and sanctioned loads. Until the exercise is completed, the existing billing sys tem will continue.
