The Assam government has started automatically disconnecting electricity supply to its offices and installations with smart meters during off-duty hours and has also decided to end the “VIP culture” by charging MLAs and officials for their energy bills from July 1. These steps are likely to save the power department at least ₹30 crore annually.

Approximately 8,000 government consumers and installations like irrigation and water supply facilities, having smart meters, have been covered under the “auto-off/on” exercise to check wasteful consumption of electricity and power.

“In order to prevent wastage of electricity during the night hours in the government offices/buildings when these offices are not functioning, the government has started a unique initiative to automatically disconnect power supply to the offices (having smart meters) during the evening hours (from 5pm) and reconnect them in the morning hours (9am) from the Guwahati control room,” an official told The Telegraph.

The major departments that are being covered are schools, anganwadi centres, offices of the PWD, PHE, forest, irrigation and sericulture departments where smart meters are installed. However, schools and anganwadi centres will be reconnected by 7am.

The power department has installed 22 lakh smart metres till now and hopes to take it to 68 lakh by December 2025.