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Project to shift power meters outside houses kicks off in Chandigarh
Chandigarh chief engineer CB Ojha said the project had been allotted to a Delhi-based company that will complete the work within six months
After laying underground power cables, the Chandigarh administration has allotted the work of shifting electricity meters installed inside houses to the outside walls.
For starters, the domestic meters in Sector 8 will be shifted as part of the ₹2.52-crore pilot project.
UT chief engineer CB Ojha said the project had been allotted to a Delhi-based company that will complete the work within six months. “Around 6,000 meters will be shifted in Sector 8. Once implemented successfully, the project will continue in the rest of the city,” he said.
He said the shifting of meters will put a check on tampering of meters: “It will also make it easier for the electricity department officials to take meter readings, as they often encounter locked houses. Residents, too, complain about having to allow power department employees to enter their house to take readings.”
“Underground cables will eliminate the hazard posed by overhead transformers and high-tension wires, which hang precariously on the edges of slip roads, road berms and parking lots in the sector. The power infrastructure in the area was over 50 years old, and led to frequent breakdowns and disruption in supply. Now, there will be uninterrupted power supply in case of thunderstorms or heavy rains,” another official said.
