ISLAMABAD - Terming the raid on the residence of the top man of Peshawar Electric Supply Company after the instruction of a provincial minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa a 'cry of a thief', Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali has said that the campaign against electricity theft is being intensified.
Addressing a news conference in the premises of Water & Power Ministry on Friday, the minister made public the evidence of power theft being done in the jurisdiction of Sukkur Electric Supply Company. He said power thieves were more injurious than cancer. He said the magnitude of the theft has been determined in different areas and now action would be taken against those involved in electricity theft. He said that he himself would be visiting different areas as part of the raids to check the electricity theft. He also made it loud and clear that the country could not move forward until those consuming electricity pay for it.
The minister said that the recovery rate of Sepco is only 40 per cent as many of the villages of Sindh province are getting free electricity without paying even a single penny. He also declared that 20 to 22-hour long loadshedding would be made in these areas of high power theft.
"Losses of the Naudero city feeder are around 98 per cent which is the constituency of Faryal Talpur," Sher said, adding that campaign against power thieves of Sepco would start from Saturday (today).
Giving more details of recovery on account of power theft in the area of MNA Nazir Bhogio, the state minister said Rs130 million was to be recovered from the area of the MNA. More, Rs445 million was to be recovered from 13,334 power consumers of Ratodero while losses in Naseerabad are around 95 per cent and Rs234 million was to be recovered. Similarly, power losses in Lakhi Sub Division are 94 per cent and Rs130 million was to be recovered.