By Jameela Akhter
Sheeri: The residents and shopkeepers of Sheeri village of Narvaw area are up in arms against the Power Development Department for alleged forced installation of smart meters without replacing deteriorating infrastructure, including decaying wooden poles and dangling outdated power lines, which have caused substantial electricity losses over the years.
The Department of Power Development (PDD) has come under scrutiny for not addressing the aging infrastructure before proceeding with the smart meter installation. The consumers are demanding answers as to why the vital infrastructure upgrades were overlooked.
“The smart meters might be the latest innovation, but what good are they if the very lines they’re connected to are unreliable?” exclaimed Sarpanch Sheeri Ghulam Rasool Bhat.
“We’ve been living with this subpar infrastructure for far too long. It’s a matter of safety and reliability. We need proper cabling and new electric poles before these smart meters are even considered. These wooden electric poles were installed some 50 years ago,” he added.
For years, the village has grappled with electricity losses resulting from the decades-old transmission lines and fragile wooden poles that barely support the tangled web of power lines crisscrossing the area. Frequent power outages and fluctuations have hampered the villagers’ daily lives, impacting businesses and essential services.
“We’re not against progress, but progress must be responsible and sustainable. Installing high-tech smart meters won’t address the root problem if our foundation is unstable. We demand that the Power Development Department prioritize our safety and well-being over hasty upgrades,” said General Secretary Beopar Mandal Sheeri Imtiyaz Ahmad Lone Sheeri.
The fear of safety hazards looms large, as these aging wooden poles could hardly support the weight of the new smart meters in winters with heavy snowfall. The instability of the infrastructure raises concerns of possible damage to property or, worse yet, harm to pedestrians and nearby establishments.
In this regard, the Executive Engineer of the PDD Department, Baramulla Dalbir Singh told Kashmir Images that infrastructure development is the department’s prerogative. “We are working on it and new poles and transmission lines will be installed in the coming months,” he informed.
