Odisha Assembly Debate: Opposition Questions Smart Meters, Govt Defends Power Sector Gains
The Odisha Assembly witnessed sharp exchanges between ruling BJP legislators and opposition members over the state’s power supply and the rollout of smart meters.
Congress MLAs alleged that despite Odisha being a power‑surplus state, many villages remain without electricity.
They demanded tariff reductions, removal of smart meters, and concessions for farmers, while criticising frequent outages and inflated bills.
BJD members joined in, questioning the high cost of smart meters—Rs 5,000 each compared to Karnataka’s Rs 800 retrofit—and accused the government of favouring distribution companies with Rs 735 crore allocated for installation.
Defending the government’s record, BJP legislators highlighted infrastructure improvements, including an increase in substations from 1,017 to 1,195 and transformers from 11,562 to 14,733.
Energy Minister Nityananda Gond reported that consumer numbers rose from 76 lakh to 97.4 lakh, losses dropped from 29.48% to 16.55%, and 9.57 lakh families received free connections under the Saubhagya scheme.
Farmers, he added, pay the lowest tariff at Rs 1.25 per unit.
While the government asserted that Odisha’s power sector has significantly improved, opposition members maintained that rural consumers continue to suffer from outages and high costs.
