PDD steps up anti-theft drive, registers 40 FIRs
The Power Development Department (PDD) has stepped up inspection drives and registered over 40 FIRs in last few days across the Valley after directions by government to book the repeated offenders.
According to officials, the FIRs were registered under the Jammu and Kashmir Electricity Act, 2010, after consumers were found not registered with the PDD and indulging in repeated incidents of power theft.The FIRs have been registered in two circles of Srinagar district and Ganderbal circle.
Officials said 30 FIRs have been registered in the first and second circle of Srinagar district while in Ganderbal circle 5 FIRs were lodged.
They said inspection drives have been intensified in 3 other power circles.
“The PDD stepped up the inspection with the recovery of fines from consumers after the power theft became rampant here. We have recovered the fine from the consumers for using electricity more than the agreed load. But as a deterrent we have started registering FIRs as well,’’ a senior PDD official told .
He said though FIRs were registered earlier as well but it gained momentum recently. “In October, Deputy Chief Minister, Dr Nirmal Singh, who is also Power Minister, had directed PDD officials to intensify inspection drives following which the cases were registered against the violators”.
The official said he wrote to the Executive Engineers of different PDD divisions and asked them to speed up the recovery drives.
The PDD officials are now jointly organized the inspection drives with the police after PDD staff was assaulted at many places during such inspection drives.
“We have carried out the inspections for revision of load. At many places the connections have been snapped due to extra consumption of electricity by the consumers and the load revised for increased power utilization,” a PDD official said.
He said in cases of tempering of meters and frequent violations, instructions were given to register the police cases.
“The consumption remains high during the evening hours. We have also resorted to power cuts to the industrial units for 4 hours in the evening beginning 6 pm. However, due to frequent use of electric gadgets, the demand is much higher than the supply,” the official said.
Minister of State for Power, Mohammad Ashraf Mir, said, “We have been inspecting the domestic consumers and fine has been recovered for violation of load agreement”.
He, however, said they have instructed officials to register FIRs as it is already provided in the Electricity Act to ensure that it acts as a deterrent and people don’t repeat the offences.
