Hyderabad, February 24: The Central Discom has good news in store for consumers vexed with lack of response from the fuse-off call centres (FoC) in their respective localities. If modernisation of FoCs as proposed by the Metro Zone is approved by Chairman-Managing Director M.T. Krishnababu, customers in GHMC area can expect to have their calls about blackouts actually answered!
Calls unanswered and lines busy for hours are the chronic complaints against the FoCs, and there have been times when angry consumers vandalised the centres and beat up the staff. Services would be at their worst during peak summer when supply is less and interruptions are more.
A pilot project to be experimented with in the north circle of Metro Zone as part of the Trouble Management Call Centre project could consign these concerns to the past. According to the proposal, all FoC lines within the circle will be centralised at a single location. Lines will be interconnected so as to enable the transferability of the calls. “This is to ensure accountability and faster service to the consumers. The project will first be implemented in the 27 FoCs of the north circle, and upon success, will be extended to the whole of GHMC area constituting five circles,” informed N. Saratchandra Seenu, the Chief General Manager of the CPDCL Metro Zone.
Existing staff of the FoCs will be retained for the centralised call centre too after due training, he said. Further, GPRS-enabled mobile vans complete with emergency relief gear and public address system will be kept ready at the section offices represented by the respective FoCs for prompt and efficient delivery of service.
For this purpose, 27 Maruti Omni vans will be purchased and modified to display the CPDCL logo and the emergency helpline number, Mr.Seenu informed. There will be an added advantage for consumers whose mobile numbers are available with the company. They will be informed, through interactive voice response, about the planned power cuts in their area for maintenance or improvement works. “A recorded voice will be heard when they call the FoC to enquire about the power cut. But this service will be available only if they call from the mobile number given to the company,” informed Mr.Seenu.
-Agencies