NGO meets BJP president, protests forced installation of smart meters

A delegation of Citizens for Democracy led by Elvis Gomes handing over a memorandum to BJP State president Damu Naik on the smart meters.

MARGAO

The Citizens for Democracy has upped the ante in support of its demand for the scrapping of the controversial smart meters after a delegation called on BJP State President Damu Naik on Saturday to protest over what they termed as forced installation of smart meters by the BJP government.

The delegation led by Elvis Gomes handed over a memorandum demanding that the Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s  statement on the Floor of the Lok Sabha on April 2 that smart meters cannot be installed without the consent of the electricity consumer,  be strictly followed. Members of the delegation include Amar Gaonkar, Mario D and Melwin Fernandes among others.

Meanwhile, addressing the media, CFD convenor Elvis Gomes has accused the Power Department of cheating Goans over smart meter installation.

He said the group that called on Damu Naik sought an urgent clarification on the Union Government’s stated position that smart meters are not mandatory under the provisions of the Electricity Act, 2003.

Despite this clarification, he said the Goa Power Department continues to move forward with installation, leading to allegations of a "deliberate attempt to mislead" the citizens of Goa. 

Gomes pointed out that a recent Right to Information (RTI) inquiry has exposed a startling lack of due diligence by the Electricity Department. According to the RTI response, the department holds no information regarding several critical aspects of the project.

"It is shocking and unacceptable that the department is attempting to force smart meters onto the public while lacking basic information on safety, legality, and accuracy," group  spokesman Amar Gaonkar stated.

Citizens for Democracy maintained that the department is attempting to bypass established procedures and ignore public health concerns to "bulldoze" its way into a prepaid system. 

Gaonkar said the organization demand an immediate halt to the installations until the department can provide the missing technical reports and reconcile its actions with the statements made in the Lok Sabha.

Joseph Vaz of the Navelim Consumer Civic Forum decried the lack of transparency in the whole process.