NT Reporter
Ponda
Warning of strict action, Power Minister Sudin Dhavalikar on Monday urged people across the state to register their inverters and generators with the Electricity Department at the earliest.
“Due to reverse current flow from unregistered inverters and generators, innocent staffers of the Power Department have lost their lives in the past, and to prevent such incidents, the government has decided to act firmly,” he said.
Speaking to the press on the sidelines of his visit to Ponda’s Sarvajanik Ganesh Utsav Mandal, Dhavalikar said that people who already have inverters or generators should register them with the Department without delay, while those planning new installations must seek prior permission.
“Or else the Department will take action which may even include power disconnection,” he said.
The Minister said that consumers often install generators and inverters through unprofessional contractors and with substandard equipment, endangering Electricity Department workers. He recalled that a fatal electrocution in Bicholim in 2024 was allegedly triggered by backfed electricity from an improperly installed inverter. “There are regulations that require the consumers to abide by strict protocols while installing generators, inverters, etc. The public, however, pay scant respect to these,” said Dhavalikar.
He also urged consumers to shift their power meters to accessible locations before November.
Poriem MLA Deviya Rane recently told the Assembly that in the last three years, over 59 linemen and wiremen have been injured and nine have died.
