Srinagar: Downtown residents protest against installation of smart meters
Srinagar: Scores of residents in Rainawari in central Kashmir’s Srinagar district over the installation of smart meters in the area.
The protestors, mainly women, chanted slogans against PDD, asking the latter to stop the installation of smart meters in the area and restore the electricity, which was snapped yesterday, at the earliest.
The protestors blocked the main road near JLNM Hospital, causing a standstill for a few hours.
“When have already installed the meters in our houses and now they are asking us to install these in our shops”, a woman protestor said, adding that “we had protested against the move yesterday also, following which the authorities snapped the electricity to the area.”
“We request the government not to install any more meters in our area and remove those already installed here,” they said adding “We will pay as per our consumption but only want these smart meters to be removed from here.”
“We have been protesting for a long time now, but no one is listening to us”, they lamented.
A few people from the administration, later on, visited the site to pacify the protesters following which the latter dispersed peacefully.
When contacted, Chief Engineer KPDCL told GNS that the electricity will be restored once the inhabitants allow them to install smart meters. “The way these smart meters are to be installed across Kashmir likewise will be installed in Rainawari also,” he said.
Meanwhile, SHO Rainawari Syed Junaid told GNS that the protestors dispersed peacefully after a police team visited the site. (GNS)
