Sambhal drive exposes 1379 power theft instances, Rs 7.1-cr revenue loss

BLAMING SP LEADERS FOR POWER THEFT, UPPCL OFFICIALS STATED THE DRIVE HAS DECREASED THE LOAD TO AROUND 60% AND WILL BRING EXTRA REVENUE OF AROUND RS 4.5 CRORE PER MONTH

- Rohit Kumar Singh

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited's drive to curb power thefts in Sambhal since September this year has exposed 1379 power theft incidents that caused Rs 7.1-crore revenue loss.

These figures came to the fore amid power theft allegations by Uttar Pradesh energy minister AK Sharma while replying to Samajwadi Party's (SP) opposition to a proposal for privatisation in the power sector in the state. The minister had made this point in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council during the recently concluded winter session.

The minister had also alleged that the SP's real worry was that organised power theft was unlikely to continue under private companies. He said there were certain areas in most cities, where conducting raids was a tough task. The minister cited Sambhal where half-a-dozen mosques were allegedly caught collectively involved in power theft to the extent of 130 KW.