Vizag apartments body says no to smart meters
The smart meters were linked to pre-paid systems and charges would be made as per the usage during peak load and normal times
Visakhapatnam: Members of Visakhapatnam Apartments Residents Welfare Association at a meeting held in Madhurawada passed a resolution to appeal to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to review the property tax system.
Association general secretary, B.B. Ganesh, said the GVMC authorities were charging the property tax based on the value of the property and not rental value as it was in the practice earlier.
“The Chief Minister has promised to review property tax during election campaign and now we hope he will fulfill his promise,” Ganesh hoped.
Similarly, he said the Association would also ask the Chief Minister not to install smart meters for collecting power tariff. The smart meters were linked to pre-paid systems and charges would be made as per the usage during peak load and normal times. Hence, the consumer would never know when the power supply was withdrawn due to non-payment of bills, he noted.
The association also decided to submit a representation to the GVMC zonal commissioner regarding potholes on main roads, non-clearance of silt from open drains and absence of streetlights at important locations across the city.
Due to accumulation of silt, drainage water was overflowing onto the roads near apartments emanating unbearable stench and inconvenience to the residents, he complained.