Jagran correspondent, Moradabad. The figures of electricity theft in Moradabad zone are worrying. In the year 2024, within seven months from January to August, electricity theft worth Rs 22.72 crore was detected in Moradabad zone. In the special campaign of the Electricity Department, irregularities being committed by the consumers of category Kiya connection, overloading etc. have come to light. The department has not only imposed the fine but also intensified recovery and legal action.
Theft of 454.4 crore units has been revealed at the zone level. Let us tell you that 3317.56 crore units of electricity was received. In which electricity bills of Rs 2863.16 crore were collected. Vigilance raids will also be increased. Besides, a special campaign will also be run for densely populated areas.
What do departmental figures say?
According to departmental data, more cases of electricity theft were found in Moradabad, Rampur and Sambhal of Moradabad zone. Electricity theft worth more than Rs 10 crore has been detected in Moradabad alone. There have been cases of illegal connections, tampering with meters and using electricity by laying direct lines in urban areas as well as in rural areas. Electricity theft worth about Rs 7 crore has been recorded in Rampur.
Here, there were more cases of domestic consumers and commercial establishments using electricity by bypassing the meter. Along with imposing fine in these cases, the department has also registered an FIR against the concerned consumers. The situation of electricity theft has become serious in Sambhal also.
Electricity theft worth more than Rs 5 crore has been detected here in a period of seven months. According to electricity department officials, thousands of connections were checked during the campaign, in which a large number of consumers were found violating the rules. In many cases, power supply was disconnected on the spot, while in serious cases, FIRs were lodged.
Electricity theft not only causes huge loss to revenue but also puts additional burden on honest consumers. The campaign will be intensified in the coming days. We will identify sensitive areas and conduct regular checks there. Ashok Kumar Chaurasia, Chief Engineer