KARACHI: While taking notice of the fresh campaign of Karachi Electric Supply Company against power theft, National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has warned KESC against violation of NEPRA rules.
Through its media campaign, KESC is threatening that the power thieves would face three years of imprisonment or over Rs 0.15 million fine. But NEPRA has made it clear that KESC cannot not register an FIR against registered consumers. However, the company can take legal action against those who are using electricity through illegal means by bypassing the metering equipment.
According to a notice issued to KESC recently, if a premises/person is found to be hooked directly with the KESC’s supply line by bypassing the metering equipment or if the consumer is using electricity direct from the company’s supply line and/or the person living in the premises is not a consumer of KESC, then the company shall process the case as ‘theft’ of electricity.
For such cases, it said, the company could register an FIR with the police through a responsible officer equal or above the rank of Sub Divisional Officer. However, for action against registered consumers of KESC, NEPRA has mentioned that there is a proper way of investigation of power theft which should be applied by the company. The last resort of the company against the registered consumers, according to the rules, would be the disconnection of power supply.
Prior to the disconnection, KESC should ensure that the company will secure the meter without removing it in the presence of the owner/occupier or his authorized representative of the locality, install a check meter and declare it as billing meter, constitute a raiding team including magistrate, POI/E.I, Officer. Once confirmed that illegal abstraction was being done, the company would serve notice to the consumer informing him of the allegations and the findings and then require of a written reply from the consumer.
If the reply was not convincing or no reply was received or if the allegations as levied are proved, the inspecting office would immediately serve a detection bill for seven days for unclaimed energy limited to the period of three billing months or six months with the approval of CEO previous.
Interestingly, it said, upon payment of the detection bill, the tampered meter shall be replaced by the KESC at the cost of the consumer and no further action would be taken by the KESC. The maximum period for charging in such cases shall be restricted to three billing cycles for general supply consumers. For other consumer classes, the period of charging can be up to a maximum of six billing cycles.
Talking to Pakistan Today, general secretary KESC Shareholder Association Choadary Mazhar said that although the company was empowered through NEPRA rules to lodge an FIR against theft of electricity, it should adopt the proper procedure mentioned by the authority while taking action against the registered consumers. However, he alleged, the company was ignoring procedure in the fresh campaign against power theft.
