How can Odisha’s 200 + Bijulee Didis on board BBPS?

 

How Odisha’s 200 bijulee didis are ensuring uninterrupted electricity to rural areas

Bijulee or Bijli Didis are assisting CESU to collect electricity bills from the villagers. The villagers in the command area of Bijulee Didis were always willing to pay the electricity bills.

The challenge the villagers faced was the non-availability of electricity bills payment avenues. It was a bit of a challenge to pay the electricity bills. They were unwilling to labelled as defaulters.

The villagers also wanted a superior customer service from the electric companies.

To boost the confidence of the villagers, in August 2019 Smart Power India (SPI), a subsidiary of the Rockefeller Foundation, working in the area of rural electrification, and Central Electricity Supply Utility of Odisha (CESU) joined hands to work on a model to improve electricity access and reliability in rural areas in Odisha.

SPI has been actively working towards developing scalable sustainable models that can improve rural electrification in India.

‘Model Distribution Zone’ (MDZ) program rolled out in August 2019 as partnership between SPI and CESU with an aim to work on a model to improve electricity access and reliability in rural areas in Odisha.

Both entities are working together to develop and implement Model Distribution Zone in select area to demonstrate improvements in electricity service by enhancing reliability and customer services.

Under the program, Women Self Help Groups (WSHGs) are engaged as micro-franchisees by CESU to perform metering, billing and collection activities.

To ensure the speedy resolution of customer complaints, customer care capacity has also been enhanced. These measures will give relief to 550,000+ rural lives in 630 villages that come under MDZ program.

 

Ensuring timely generation and payment of bills, CESU is providing billing information through SMSs / e-mail and on demand of the consumers through the toll free number of call centre. 

Consumers can pay their electricity dues online through various digital mode / mobile App like Paytm and Airtel / Debit Card / Credit Card etc.

Consumers can make payment through cheques maintaining the social distance measure by availing Cheque drop facilities at different offices of CESU.

CESU has also announced a special rebate of 4% on and above the existing rebates and incentives for making payment of March and April bills to reduce burden on rural households, enterprises and small industries.

Still the villagers prefer to pay their electricity bills in cash. This is where the Bijulee Didis come into play. The Bijulee Didis collect cash for the electricity bills and hand over the necessary receipts to the villagers.

The Bijulee Didis in turn update the collection details to their controlling office.

The Bijulee Didis through their linked SHGs get a commission for the bills collected via Cash from their villagers.

The challenge here is to ensure Bijulee Didis get the commission even when villagers pay the electricity bills via the Digital Mode.

The spade work done by Bijulee Didis in encouraging the villagers to pay the electricity bills in time has to be acknowledged.

How can Odisha’s 200 + Bijulee Didis on board BBPS?

Any thoughts here?  

 

References:

 

https://www.cescoorissa.com/franchisee/Base_Paper.pdf dt.November 2012

https://www.mycitylinks.in/women-power-cesu-success dt.03/10/2018

https://yourstory.com/herstory/2020/08/odisha-bijulee-didis-rural-electricity-power dt.17/08/2020