Budgam: Scores of women staged a protest today in Beerwah town of central Kashmir’s Budgam district against the installation of smart electricity meters. Dozens of women took to the streets, raised slogans against the administration, and blocked the main road for several hours.
Eyewitnesses told the news agency Kashmir News Trust that the protesters accused the authorities of “forcibly imposing smart meters on the poor” and said these meters are leading to unaffordable electricity bills.
One woman protester said, “We are poor people; we cannot afford the hefty bills generated by smart meters.” During the demonstration, several women returned already-installed meters, symbolically declaring them as “rejected by the public.”
The protest led to a disruption in traffic movement for several hours. The protesters warned that if their demands are not met, the agitation would intensify in the coming days. So far, there has been no official response from the local administration regarding the issue.
[KNT]
