The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) is creating sub-centres under electrical section offices for guaranteeing efficiency and better service delivery in regions with a large number of consumers.
In a first for the KSEB, a proposal to open the sub-centres under 11 section offices has been cleared by the full-time directors of the State-run power utility.
Pitched as a low-cost solution, the concept primarily seeks to address issues linked to power supply failure within the time-frames set down in the Standards of Performance for service delivery prescribed by the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission.
Meeting consumer expectations aside, opening a sub centre is much more cost-effective for the KSEB than opening a brand new electrical section office with all the trappings and staff. Operating under the section office and Assistant Engineer concerned, the sub centre will have a break-down unit with vehicle and equipment to attend to power interruptions. It will be manned by staff redeployed from other units.
At present, the KSEB has roughly 775 electrical section offices across the State serving 1.3 crore consumers.
“The service expectancy of the consumers has increased and it is often found difficult to cater to consumer requirements if the section offices have a very high consumer strength and/or vast area,” the KSEB has noted.
In creating the sub-centres, the power utility has responded to an increasing demand for new section offices or bifurcating existing ones to effectively handle supply failure issues, N. S. Pillai, chairman and managing director, KSEB, said.
“We have sections which cater to 7,000 or 8,000 consumers, and others that have 30,000-32,000 consumers under them. Notwithstanding the difference in consumer numbers, their staff patterns are more or less similar. But opening a new section demands a huge commitment from the KSEB in terms of money, new buildings and manpower. That said, we also need to provide 24x7 service. Sub-centres are an ideal solution to the problem,” Mr. Pillai said.
