56 cases of power theft exposed in Pune

The anonymity of the Internet it seems has come as a boon for the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), as it has helped the power body to expose 56 cases of power theft in Pune district last year. This was revealed by Shivaji S Indalkar, deputy director vigilance, security and enforcement of MSEDCL.

“All cases were reported online by neighbours, who had come to know of power thefts in their vicinity. In 20 of the above cases, we have given the complainant, a cash prize of 10 % of the compounding fees,’’ he said. The total of the compounding fees amounted to Rs59.78 lakh last year.

Majority of the cases of power thefts according to Indalkar, were committed by residents followed by commercial establishments. Last year, around 370 cases of power thefts in houses were exposed, while 129 cases of power theft by commercial establishments were recorded by the power company and only 84 cases of theft related to agriculture came to light.

In the police station of MSEDCL, which is in-charge of districts of Pune, Kolhapur, Satara and Sangli, cases of power thefts, unauthorised use of electricity and miscellaneous other cases are registered. All these cases are tried by the session court.