New Delhi, 23 February: The Central Government has amended the Electricity (Consumers’ Rights) Rules.ย The Union Minister for Power and New and Renewable Energy told that the revised rules will further empower consumers.
According to the information given by the ministry, the amendments have reduced the time limit for obtaining new electricity connections. This will help consumers in multi-storey flats to choose the type of connection. Installing rooftop solar systems has become easier and faster. Apart from this, in case of complaints from consumers, it will be possible to check the meters installed by the distribution company to verify the electricity consumption.
Consumers can now get separate electricity connections to charge their electric vehicles (EVs). Under the rules, the time period for obtaining a new electricity connection has been reduced from seven days to three days in metropolitan areas, from fifteen days to seven days in other municipal areas and from thirty days to fifteen days in rural areas.
Provisions have been introduced in the rules to increase consumer choice and promote greater transparency in metering and billing.
Amendments have been made to the rules to increase the ease of installing rooftop solar PV systems at consumers’ premises and to facilitate faster installation. The requirement of technical feasibility study is exempted for systems up to 10 kW capacity. For systems of capacity above 10 kW, the timeline for completing the feasibility study has been reduced from twenty days to fifteen days.
