Alvi issues ordinance to curb power theft

Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance 2023 makes electricity theft a cognizable offense

ISLAMABAD:

President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday issued the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance 2023, an executive order that makes electricity theft a cognizable offense. The president issued the ordinance under Article 89 of the Constitution.

The presidential decree has amended Section 462 (O) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), 1860. Under the ordinance, police will be bound to file a First Information Report (FIR) on the complaint of a government officer of grade-17 or above as well as people nominated by chief executive officers of power distribution companies (DISCOs).

According to a press release issued by the Presidency, DISCOs faced difficulties in registering FIRs for incidents of electricity theft. The ordinance will help in controlling approximately Rs590 billion worth of electricity theft in the energy sector.

Minister for Energy Muhammad Ali on September 6 announced the interim government’s decision to amend the Electricity Theft Control Act through an ordinance in order to establish special courts to try people involved in electricity theft.

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This move, he said, aimed at addressing the persistent issue of power sector losses and a growing circular debt. Later, the government launched a massive crackdown to combat an alarming surge in power theft and to take stern actions against the culprits involved.

According to a report published in The Express Tribune on September 7, 100% consumers in four districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P)—Bannu, DI Khan, Tank, and Shangla—do not pay any electricity bill while around 90% people in Pasni, Gwadar, Makran, Khuzdar, and Lorelai districts of Balochistan get electricity through illegal connections.

The rate of bill collection has reduced by 5% to 6% in Hyderabad division of Sindh and 9% in Tando Allahyar. Fifteen percent of consumers use illegal connections in Tando Muhammad Khan; 21% in Shaheed Benazirabad; 60% in Larkana, and 40% in Sukkur.

During the course of one year, DISCOs purchased 116.5 billion units of electricity. They sold 97.34 billion units to consumers while 19.17 billion units were either stolen or lost due to technical deficiencies.