Campaign against theft: Bakery found using ‘stolen’ gas, electricity for past several years

Manager arrested while owner is on the run.

SUKKUR: A bakery in Qureshi Goth, Sukkur, was using allegedly stolen electricity and gas, a team of the gas utility and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) found on Tuesday evening.

A joint team of the FIA and Sui Southern Gas Company, led by FIA Circle Sukkur’s deputy director Abdul Hameed Bhutto, raided the bakery on a tip-off that it was stealing gas and electricity.

The bakery, which is spread over two acres, was using electricity and gas worth Rs70,000 and Rs500,000, respectively, according to Bhutto.



The business was set up in the backyard of a house. This was one of the largest supplier of rusks in the entire Larkana and Sukkur region, he added. During the raid, the police arrested the bakery manager, Pyaral Mandgi, but the owner of the property, Janib Chachar, is on the run.

Even though Bhutto was unable to confirm for how long the theft was taking place for, he suspected that it was going on for the past several months. “We have lodged an FIR against Chachar and Mangi and sealed the bakery,” he said, “The accused will be produced in court for a remand.”

Campaign against theft

A campaign against electricity and gas theft started in the month of August this year, said Bhutto, adding that, so far, they have unearthed 21 cases of electricity theft and 10 cases of gas theft. More than 30 men including, seven officials of Sukkur Electric Power Company (Sepco) were arrested but they were bailed out.

Since the FIA was taken on board, it has managed to save Rs10 million per week that was being lost to electricity theft in Sepco region, Bhutto pointed out. He admitted there is political pressure. “But I always refuse to give in.”

He boasted that he has arrested several men with political backing and refused to let go, even when there were threats. Even the bakery owner had the backing of some influential men that is why nobody had dared to raid his business until now, he said.

Sepco public relations officer Noor Ahmed Soomro said that they have unearthed 23 cases of huge electricity theft so far and have managed to save millions of rupees. “We have conducted crackdowns against ice factories, tubewells and other large commercial consumers and registered 23 FIRs,” he said, admitting that electricity theft is not possible without the involvement of Sepco employees.

“If we want to bring change, then we must make our employees accountable, otherwise this practice will continue.”

Meanwhile, SSGC zonal manager Aziz Abro said their joint team has uncovered 10 cases of gas theft and saved Rs1.3 million so far. According to him, four ice factories were raided in Dokri district in Larkana, a hotel in Gambat district of Khairpur, a factory in Daharki and an icecream factory in Jacobabad.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th, 2013.