(MENAFN- IANS) Agartala, July 11 (IANS) Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) has set a target to install six lakh consumer-friendly smart meters across the state by March 2027, officials said on Friday.

TSECL Managing Director Biswajit Basu said that in alignment with the Union government's Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS), six lakh smart meters would be installed in the premises of the electricity consumers.

Of the six lakh, around 88,750 smart meters have already been installed in the state so far, Basu told the media.

He said that the TSECL in alignment with the Centre's RDSS and under the Asian Development Bank-funded projects, has taken significant strides in modernising the state's power infrastructure through the installation of smart meters.

According to the TSECL Managing Director, the digital smart meters are equipped with communication technology that enables automated and remote reading of energy consumption by the consumers.

The smart meters provide real-time usage data to both consumers and TSECL and these meters would abolish the existing manual meter reading system, he said.

The official added that smart meters would facilitate preparing both postpaid and prepaid billing, usage tracking through mobile apps, and quick fault detection for early resolution, Basu said, adding that the project is likely to be completed by March 2027 with an estimated cost of Rs 603 crore.

On the issue of poor bill payment, the TSECL Managing Director revealed that only 49 per cent of the state's ten lakh power consumers currently pay their electricity bills.

"Last year, it was just 39 per cent. We're going door-to-door, requesting people to pay. We cannot force anyone. The total outstanding dues amount to around Rs 450 crore till date," he said, while clarifying that government departments have no pending dues.

He added that a pre-feasibility report through National Hydroelectric Power Corporation is already underway for setting up an 800 MW pumped storage power project in Longthorai valley in Dhalai district.

The proposed project has been found to be technically viable.

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) will follow soon, with an estimated project cost between Rs 6,000 to Rs 7,000 crore.

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