Consumer claims he is being unfairly targeted by discom for power theft
Consumer claims he is being unfairly targeted by discom for power theft
Delhi is the power centre of India; it is also the hub of power thefts, with losses running into crores every year. But it seems the power distribution companies (discoms) are looking to compensate through undue means.
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| Tampered BSES officials allegedly charged electricity worth 750 KW instaed of 2 KW from Chaubey |
A resident of Dwarka says he has unwittingly fallen victim to such an ordeal. Ramji Chaubey alleges that the BSES is charging him for appliances he doesn't even use. "I have been asked to foot the bill for electrical appliances like blower, immersion rod and a defective washing machine, which are lying unused," he said while talking to MiD DAY.
Chaubey shifted to his present rented accommodation a few months back. Everything was going well till March 29 when a few BSES officials appeared at his doorstep. "They wanted to check the meter reading but they later entered the house and started clicking photographs of every electric appliance," he said.
But besides clicking the photographs of the appliances in use, the BSES officials also did not spare the other machines and gadgets stored in the house. A few days later Chaubey received a notice from BSES, which informed him that the house had a limited electricity connection for two kilowatt but he was drawing electricity worth 750 KW.
The notice also listed all the appliances under use and thus mentioned things like blower and immersion rod, which are generally used in winters. It also demanded an explanation from Chaubey, asking him to furnish reasons why a case of electricity theft should not be registered against him.
As soon as Chaubey got the notice he rushed to the nearest BSES office only to meet several others like him from nearby areas. In most of the cases the notices had been received by tenants as the landlords were living elsewhere. In Chaubey's case the landlord is a Delhi police head constable who bluntly asked him to cough up the amount demanded by BSES officials.
Though BSES refused to comment on the issue one of its officials on condition of anonymity linked the episode to the huge electricity thefts in the area. "We need to take some innovative steps to fight off power theft in several areas. Consumers have to bear the bill for their uses," he said.
| Loss of power |
| The average cost of electricity in India may be the highest in the world but Rs 30,000 crore are being lost annually because of theft and poor billing practices, the planning commission said recently.
Indicating that outdated networks are adding to the losses of distribution companies, the Planning Commission sees the average cost of taking power to the consumer's doorstep increasing from Rs 3.60 per unit in 2005-06 to Rs 4.16 per unit in 2009-10, or an increase of 15.5%.
Against this level of rise in the costs, average tariff has increased from Rs 2.87 per unit to Rs 3.37 in the same period, marking a 17.4% increase. "The gap has increased to around 89 paise per unit in 2009-10,'' the panel said in its mid-term review of the 11th Plan. |
