T.N. government’s decision to shelve smart meters project a grave mistake: BJP

The Tamil Nadu government’s reported determination to shelve the ‘smart meters” (electricity) task with contiguous effect would beryllium a sedate mistake, BJP spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy said connected Sunday (June 7, 2026). If this was true, Mr. Thirupathy said, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay indispensable recognize scrapping 1 of the largest and astir important reforms presently underway successful India’s powerfulness assemblage would beryllium a sedate mistake.

“It risks pushing the already loss-making Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) into adjacent deeper fiscal losses.This project, designed nether the Central government’s Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS), volition pave the mode for the State’s advancement successful the powerfulness sector. By providing close metering and billing astatine each connection, it volition greatly payment the nationalist portion correcting assorted method and commercialized losses of the authorities and steadily expanding the gross of the powerfulness organisation company.”

The government’s assertion that this task required a monolithic one-time concern was acold from the truth, Mr. Thirupathy contended. Smart meters would make a robust infrastructure afloat supported by loans and grants from Central authorities agencies, on with backstage capital, helium said. “This is simply a important inaugural for the future.

This state-of-the-art precocious technology-driven project, which tin destruct administrative losses and guarantee prime powerfulness proviso to conscionable people’s needs, was delayed 2 years agone by the past DMK authorities for governmental reasons arsenic the companies bidding for the task refused to supply the ‘commission’ (bribe) demanded by them.”

Then the DMK authorities cited precocious costs and shelved the full project, Mr. Thirupathy said: “If the existent TVK authorities follows the aforesaid path, it volition beryllium a immense blunder. TN CM indispensable recognize if this task is abandoned, Tamil Nadu volition suffer astir ₹5,000 crore of cardinal authorities fiscal concessions and grants being provided for loss-reduction measures nether assorted schemes. Energy Minister R. Nirmalkumar should inquire with the officials, recognize the facts, and talk responsibly, the BJP spokesperson said.

Acting impulsively with a lacklustre cognition would origin monolithic losses to Tamil Nadu and hinder the State’s development, helium said. “The Chief Minister and the Minister acrophobic indispensable cautiously analyse this. The Tamil Nadu authorities indispensable recognise and realise that halting oregon delaying the astute metre task — the powerfulness ministry’s biggest inaugural — is improper. I impulse the Tamil Nadu authorities to instantly instrumentality each indispensable steps to instrumentality this task swiftly.”