Pune: Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) has launched a major crackdown on electricity theft in Pune, booking 1,281 consumers over the past 15 days and imposing penalties of Rs 81.55 lakh for allegedly stealing 3,40,730 units of electricity.
According to MSEDCL, criminal proceedings will be initiated against those who fail to pay the penalty.
MSEDCL takes action against theft
The action was taken under Sections 135 and 138 of the Electricity Act, 2003, against consumers accused of tampering with electricity meters or drawing power through illegal direct connections.
Misuse of electricity for purposes other than the sanctioned category also attracts action under Section 126 of the Act.
The special enforcement drive was launched following directions issued by MSEDCL Director (Operations) Dhananjay Aundhekar, with Chief Engineer, Pune Circle, Sunil Kakade, supervising the campaign across the Pune Circle.
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Crackdown across Pune circles
During the drive, 375 cases of electricity theft were detected in the Rasta Peth Urban Circle, involving 90,799 units of stolen electricity, with penalties of Rs 23.30 lakh imposed.
In the Pune Rural Circle, action was taken against 580 consumers for allegedly stealing 1,36,930 units of electricity, resulting in penalties of Rs 29.82 lakh.
Similarly, 326 cases were detected in the Ganeshkhind Urban Circle, involving 1,13,001 units of stolen electricity, with penalties amounting to Rs 28.42 lakh, MSEDCL said.
Further action planned
The power utility further said that between April and July of the current financial year, action has been taken against 2,283 electricity theft cases in the Pune Circle, involving theft of 8,74,559 units of electricity.
Penalties totalling Rs 7.61 crore have been imposed during the period.
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Appealing to consumers, Chief Engineer Sunil Kakade said electricity is a national asset and theft is a punishable offence.
He urged citizens to obtain authorised electricity connections and warned that illegal connections not only attract legal action but also pose a serious threat to life.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
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