The government will install two crore smart prepaid electricity meters by 2021 to prevent the misuse and wastage of electricity and to create automatic billing facilities for electricity users.
The authorities introduced the prepaid meter system in 2011.
As part of the government’s vision, a plan has been taken up to set up another 31 lakh smart (online) pre-payment meters in the next phase.
Currently, the installed pre-payment meter subscribers are being given 01 per cent subsidy by the government on recharge amount. Pre-payment meter billed on actual usage so there is no chance of getting any estimated or ghostly bill.
Moreover, a voltage limit can be set on the pre-payment meter, thereby protecting the customer’s electrical equipment from over-voltage or under-voltage.
With the pre-payment meter installed, customers can purchase pre-payment meter recharge from remote offices, from vending stations without visiting banks, bank POS and mobile recharge centres.
In the future, this service will be further modernized and can be accessed directly through online without any token entry.
Besides, subscribers can use Tk 100 as an emergency credit at the end of the money. After the emergency credit ends, the meter will be operational as a friendly hour from 4:00 pm to 10:00 am and the meter will remain active on public holidays. However, the customer can enjoy these benefits one time for every recharge.
The pre-payment meter allows the customer to use as much load as the program does (authorized load). By providing save loads in non-electrified areas, the government’s vision can help implement Sheikh Hasina’s initiatives supply power to every house, officials concerned said.
When power consumption is limited in the peak hour, the power consumption in the off-peak hour increases, thus increasing the efficiency of the system from production to distribution and reducing cost, which is a significant component of the smart grid, they said.
The authorities said a vested quarter is spreading confusion to the public without knowing everything about the pre-payment meter and trying to damage the development activities of the government by preventing pre-paid meter programme.
