Jalgaon: Electricity-related issues faced by entrepreneurs in Jalgaon, Dhule and Nandurbar districts will be resolved promptly, and necessary infrastructure will be developed for this purpose, assured Mahavitaran Director (Operations) Dhananjay Aundhekar.
Aundhekar interacted with entrepreneurs during a meeting held at Mahavitaran’s Jalgaon Circle office. Chief Engineer I A Mulani, Superintending Engineer Sanjay Sarg and In-charge Superintending Engineer Chetan Nandanwar were present at the meeting. Entrepreneurs from Jalgaon district attended in person, while those from Dhule and Nandurbar districts participated through video conference.
Discussions between Mahavitaran and entrepreneurs covered various issues, including power infrastructure, quality of supply, feeder and substation capacities, voltage quality, new industrial connections and future demand projections for industrial areas such as Jalgaon, Dhule, Nandurbar, Nardana, Navapur, Bhusawal, Jamner and Chalisgaon.
Aundhekar said that if industrial consumers provide land for new 33 kV substations, the process of setting them up would be expedited to ensure quality and uninterrupted power supply to industrial estates. He instructed officials that negligence regarding electricity services for industrial consumers would not be tolerated.
He directed officials to identify the causes of frequent power outages and implement remedial measures, besides carrying out feeder segregation work wherever required. The capacity of certain substations in the Jalgaon MIDC area has already been augmented. Sites for two proposed substations have been acquired, while follow-up with MIDC is underway for the remaining two sites. He instructed officials to expedite the establishment of these substations.
Aundhekar assured that uninterrupted power supply would be provided to industries in Dhule and Nandurbar districts by undertaking necessary works such as establishing substations, increasing capacity and separating power lines.
He expressed satisfaction that entrepreneurs in the Jalgaon Circle had shown preference for the installation of smart meters. He also directed the NCC agency to hold weekly meetings to resolve consumer grievances related to billing issues that may arise after the installation of smart meters.
Entrepreneurs expressed satisfaction that a director-level official had visited Jalgaon to understand their difficulties and assured them of a resolution.
While reviewing the Jalgaon Circle at Vidyut Bhavan in Jalgaon, Aundhekar instructed officials to prioritise providing quality service and uninterrupted power supply to consumers. He also emphasised the need to focus on electricity bill collection, a key revenue source for Mahavitaran, and reduce power leakage.
Aundhekar said a solar revolution was underway in Maharashtra through the Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana-2, described as the world’s largest decentralised solar energy project. The project enables daytime power supply to agricultural pumps.
In the Jalgaon Circle, farmers are receiving daytime power through several agricultural feeders. However, Aundhekar urged officials to work on a war footing to ensure 100% daytime power supply through agricultural feeders. He directed them to accelerate feeder separation work and install SDTs (Special Designed Transformers) for consumers connected to mixed feeders.
He instructed officials to ensure that consumers receive accurate bills and replace faulty meters or meters where readings are not being recorded with smart meters immediately. He also directed officials to address misconceptions among consumers regarding the accuracy and benefits of smart meters.
Aundhekar said power supply to consumers who fail to respond to bill payment requests should be disconnected immediately. He further directed officials to file criminal cases against defaulting consumers who continue to use electricity illegally without paying bills and launch a campaign to curb electricity theft.
