‘Power department not a welfare department’

Advisor Tovihito addressing the meeting convened by special team for ensuring effective management of power system in Dimapur district on August 27 at SLDC Complex Nagarjan. (DIPR Photo)

Advisor Tovihito addressing the meeting convened by special team for ensuring effective management of power system in Dimapur district on August 27 at SLDC Complex Nagarjan. (DIPR Photo)

Dimapur, August 27 (MExN): Power consumers in Dimapur have been urged to pay their electricity bills with Nagaland Advisor for Power department Tovihito Ayemi asserting that, “We need to pay for what we are using.”

Power department is not a welfare department, nor are electricity bills a form of taxation, he said during a meeting on that was convened to discuss power theft, improving revenue collection and ensuring effective management of power systems in Dimapur district, a report from the state DIPR informed.

Stating that a lot of commercial activities take place especially in Dimapur which is the commercial hub of Nagaland, the Advisor reminded that without power, economic activities would come to a standstill if revenue generation is not improved. In this regard, he urged the apex civil society organizations (CSOs) to collaborate and extend support towards increasing revenue generation. He further impressed upon the department and the civil societies to pull up their socks and contribute by organising awareness campaigns and sensitising the power consumers to pay for what they are consuming, the report stated. 

Similarly, Dimapur Deputy Commissioner Rajesh Soundararajan noted that if the trend of revenue gap continues, the situation would go from bad to worse as lack of proper power supply would be a setback to all developmental activities in the district. He further assured that the district administration would render all possible support towards strengthening the power sector.

Principal Secretary for Power KD Vizol observed that power shut downs continue to happen in Dimapur despite improvement in infrastructure and services. Attributing the shut downs to rampant power thefts, Vizol said that Dimapur district alone consumes more than 50% power of the state. He said that a special committee was constituted to tackle the issues through awareness programmes and educating the public on energy saving methods. He also cautioned power department staff especially the meter readers against truancy and said that strong action would be initiated against irregular staff. He sought the support and cooperation of all the civil societies for increasing electricity revenue. 

As per the report, representatives of various CSOs expressed their views about the pre-paid metering system and other areas of concern. Advisor Tovihoto assured that the issues would be addressed by the special team, the report stated.