Delay in upgradation of communication technology for managing the network of electricity smart meters and servers by the UP Power Corporation Limited is said to be the root cause of the simultaneous tripping of nearly five lakh meters at the consumer end on Wednesday.

The communication network linking the smart meters with the server installed at Shakti Bhawan, the UPPCL headquarters, is still working on 2G technology even as the Centre is in the process of rolling out the 5G technology.

Sources in UPPCL said for making the system foolproof, all the smart meters would have to replace compliant with the latest technology. “The signs of trouble were visible for over a year, either in the form of meter jumping or meters registering excess power consumption  and some other faults. The simultaneous tripping of five lakh meters is the most alarming situation which needs to be tackled without any further loss of time,” an official said.

He said the power consumers forum had filed a petition before UP Electricity Regulatory Commission in April 2019, complaining about the installation of the smart meters with obsolete technology. He said the power regulator had issued notice to the UPPCL, seeking a reply but no action had been taken by the power corporation in last over one year.

“If the smart meters are not replaced immediately and there is yet another tripping of meters it can lead to the collapse of the northern power grid due to sudden drop in demand for electricity,” UP Power Consumer Forum chairman Avadesh Verma said.

The power consumer forum alleged that the UPPCL was waiting for another disaster for replacing the smart meters.

Verma said the UPPCL had given contract for purchase of 40 lakh smart meters at a cost of Rs 1,927 crore. He said 2G and 3G was an obsolete technology and the UPPCL should have opted either for 4G or equivalent NBIOT (narrow band internet of things) communication technology.

Energy Efficiency Services (EESL), a joint venture of four public sector enterprises under the Union Ministry for Power, had announced in April 2019 about installation of over five lakh smart meters across the country. Among the states, Uttar Pradesh topped with over four lakh smart meter installations in 13 cities — Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Allahabad, Gorakhpur, Meerut, Moradabad, Aligarh, Saharanpur, Jhansi, Mathura, Bareilly and Ayodhya.

Smart meters have also been installed in Delhi, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, under the Centre’s Smart Meter National Programme (SMNP).

The EESL had signed a MoU with the UPPCL in April 2019 to replace 40 lakh conventional electricity meters with smart ones within three years with the twin objectives to enable customers to check and optimise their consumption pattern in real time with minimal manual intervention and help discoms control power theft, improve billing efficiency and reduction in AT&C losses.

The UPPCL had than claimed once the smart meters were installed, it would enable the discoms to save Rs 8,000 crore over eight years.  The UPPCL had said once discoms enhanced their operational efficiencies and increased their revenues, they could focus on investing in value-added services for its consumers.