Probe sought into UPPCL favouring ‘select’ companies

“The UPPCL board of directors, in its meeting in July, had approved the proposal for 10% performance guarantee but that same has now been reduced to 3%...” parishad chairman Avdhesh Kumar Verma said

The UP Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad has demanded a high-level probe into the UP Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) lowering the ‘performance guarantee’ amount for private companies that are selected to execute the smart prepaid metering project in the state, from 10% to just 3%.

Probe sought into UPPCL favouring ‘select’ companies

“The UPPCL board of directors, in its meeting in July, had approved the proposal for 10% performance guarantee but that same has now been reduced to 3%...” parishad chairman Avdhesh Kumar Verma said, in a statement demanding chief minister Yogi Adityanath to order an inquiry into the matter.

He said smart metering was a new project and ran the risk of failing. “In such a situation, the performance bank guarantee should have been increased and not lowered to make the firms more accountable to consumers,” he said.

‘Stop harassing consumers’: Sharma

Energy minister AK Sharma has directed the UPPCL personnel to bring about a change in their work culture and conduct. Holding a meeting in Shakti Bhawan here on Tuesday, he warned them against harassing consumers.

“The tendency of first encouraging electricity theft and taking action later must be done away with,” he said. Sharma also asked officials to take steps to successfully meet the challenges being faced in ensuring smooth power supply to consumers