The enforcement wing of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has registered 754 cases against violators and recovered ₹6.24 crore till May this year in special drives carried out against power theft and unauthorised electricity usage in the central zone.
Teams from the department have been conducting special drives in various areas of the central zone, targeting locations where power theft is prevalent.
According to data provided by the PSPCL, as many as 34,117 connections have been checked so far this year by the officials, out of which 346 cases of power theft and 281 of wrong meters have been registered against the violators. Rest of the cases involve different violations, including tampering in reading of the meter.
Baljinder Singh Sidhu, deputy chief engineer of the enforcement wing, said, “We are leaving no stone unturned in our efforts to combat power theft and ensure that those who engage in such illegal activities face the consequences. FIRs are being registered against the offenders, and fines are issued in accordance with the theft and the load of the connection.”
In 2022, the enforcement wing recovered ₹14.5 crore by taking strict action against violators. During the same period, they checked 1,16,059 connections out of which 2,356 cases were registered related to power theft, unauthorised usage, misuse of residential meters for commercial purposes, meter overloads, and tampering among other violations.
{{/usCountry}}In 2022, the enforcement wing recovered ₹14.5 crore by taking strict action against violators. During the same period, they checked 1,16,059 connections out of which 2,356 cases were registered related to power theft, unauthorised usage, misuse of residential meters for commercial purposes, meter overloads, and tampering among other violations.
{{/usCountry}}Recently, officials imposed a fine of ₹6.5 lakh to an ice cream manufacturer in the central zone for power theft. In January, officials of PSPCL fined ₹29 lakh to a consumer in Khanna for intentionally slowing down the meter of its industrial unit.
In April, officials fined ₹76 lakh to an industrial unit in the industrial area of Ludhiana for lending its approved load meter to some other person.
Sidhu highlighted the employment of specialised teams equipped with necessary expertise and tools to accurately identify instances of power theft. These teams conduct regular and targeted drives, diligently tracking down violators and taking stringent action against them.
Inderpal Singh, chief engineer, central zone PSPCL, said that despite government’s initiative to provide free electricity to consumers, people were still engaging in power theft.
Singh said that power consumption units in the central zone have increased in recent months.