Power company claims improved recovery of dues

Conducts 2,000 raids in Bahawalnagar in 11 days

BAHAWALNAGAR:

The Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO) has registered 133 cases, arrested 31 people and imposed a fine of Rs8.864 million in Bahawalnagar district during a campaign against electricity theft launched 11 days ago amid complaints by consumers of an unbearable tariff hike.

According to a report issued by the Bahawalnagar MEPCO office, the company’s officials along with the district police conducted around 2,000 raids during the campaign.

MEPCO officials collected more than Rs1.6 million in fines during the campaign that began on September 7.

The theft of 189,000 units by five commercial and domestic consumers was detected.

The district police PRO stated that 647 cases have been registered and 348 people arrested on charges of power theft during the ongoing year.

MEPCO officials said the registration of FIRs, immediate arrests and confiscation of equipment of power pilferers was yielding substantial results. There had been a reduction in electricity theft and arrears pending since long were being collected. However, several citizens criticised the dues recovery campaign as unfair and said the government was collecting electricity dues by force after hiking the tariff manifold.

A shopkeeper, Farhan Malik, told The Express Tribune that he had sold his daughter’s earrings to pay then bill last month.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th, 2023.