New Delhi: State-run Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has suspended its head of UP state and Project Manager for the state (L&T) after a blackout took place across thousands of homes in the state on Janmashtami. On August 12 evening, when people were busy celebrating Janmashtami, several smart meters in UP snapped electricity supply to thousands of homes across the state, including in Lucknow, displaying "disconnection due to non-payment of monthly arrears." The disconnection was erroneous as several customers had cleared their bills in advance.
"Due to technical error some Smart Meters were inadvertently disconnected in UP today, despite non pendency of bills. All smart metering services have now been restored," said EESL's Director (Projects) Venkatesh Dwivedi in a tweet on late August 12 evening. EESL is the company responsible for the installation and maintenance of smart meters.
While announcing the suspension of UP state head and Project Manager for dereliction of duty in the wake of the blackout, Dwivedi also said that a high-level committee has been constituted to probe the issue. "We as an organisation do not tolerate lapses in processes and as a result State Head UP (@EESL_India) & Project Manager UP (L&T) have been suspended with immediate effect… A high level committee has been constituted to delve into the issue and to ensure that such situations will not arise in future," the EESL Director (Projects) said on Twitter.
In another tweet late in the night, Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) Chairman Arvind Kumar said, "Some disconnections have been reported of smart meter consumers despite non-pendency of dues. The technical problem has been identified and most of such consumers have been/are being reconnected. We apologize for the inconvenience caused to our esteemed consumers."
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