SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly’s Committee on Estimates on Monday reviewed the power scenario in the Union Territory, with Chairman Nazir Ahmad Khan Gurezi stressing the timely completion of projects under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) and improved preparedness ahead of winter.
The committee directed the Power Development Department (PDD) to submit circle-wise data on aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses, complaint resolution figures, outstanding liabilities to central public sector undertakings and independent power producers, and the updated status of hydroelectric projects, including cost escalations and revised completion timelines, within a fortnight.
The meeting, chaired by Gurezi at the Legislative Assembly, reviewed the physical and financial progress of works under RDSS, the Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP) and other flagship schemes. Officials briefed the committee on budget utilisation, grid augmentation and power procurement.
Emphasising the importance of smart metering, the chairman said the system would help streamline billing, improve collection efficiency and provide relief to consumers. The committee also reviewed renewable energy initiatives under PM-KUSUM, rooftop solar installations and electrification of unconnected border hamlets.
Gurezi sought a clear timeline for achieving complete grid connectivity and ensuring a reliable off-grid power supply in areas where extending the grid was not feasible.
Committee members raised concerns over high AT&C losses, delays in smart metering, unscheduled power cuts, billing disputes and the slow replacement of bare conductors with aerial bunched cables.
With winter approaching, the chairman stressed the need for adequate stocks of distribution transformers and the deployment of quick-response teams in snowbound and remote areas to minimise prolonged power outages.
The meeting was attended by legislators Javid Hassan Baig, Mushtaq Guroo, Irshad Rasool Kar, Sajad Shaheen and Mian Mehar Ali. Assembly Secretary Manoj Kumar Pandit and officials of the Assembly Secretariat were also present.
Senior officials attending the meeting included Additional Chief Secretary, Power Development Department, Ashwani Kumar; Commissioner Secretary, Science and Technology Department, Babila Rakwal; Managing Director, Jammu and Kashmir State Power Development Corporation Limited, Rahul Yadav; Managing Director, Jammu Power Distribution Corporation Limited, G.P. Singh; Managing Director, Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited, Mahmood A. Shah; and Director General, Budget, M.S. Malik, besides representatives of other power-sector organisations.
