Rs105bn recovered, 83,000 arrested as govt intensifies anti-power-theft drive

A nationwide anti-power-theft campaign to recover unpaid dues has yielded Rs105 billion, thanks to initiatives spearheaded jointly by the government and military leadership, which also resulted in the arrest of 83,000 pilferers, Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.  

This effort is part of broader measures to address the power crisis and create fiscal space in the economy.

As per Radio Pakistan, from June 30 to July 17, over Rs1.63 billion were collected from power stealers in Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan, and Islamabad. An additional Rs430 million was recovered from Peshawar, Hyderabad, Sukkur, and Quetta during this period.

The report also said that relevant institutions were committed to pressing ahead with these operations until electricity theft was completely eradicated from the financially challenged country.

In March, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) launched a nationwide “massive crackdown” against electricity and gas theft.

Announcing the operation, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said there would not be any discrimination during the campaign and all those responsible would be put behind bars, he warned.

“This proactive initiative aims to curb the rampant theft of essential utilities, ensuring fair distribution and access for all citizens,” Naqvi said in a post on the social media platform, X, after chairing a meeting on the issue.

Last month, in an interview on Geo News's show "Jirga," Federal Minister for Energy (Power Division) Awais Leghari disclosed that power theft was dealing a blow of Rs600 billion annually to the national exchequer.

The power minister stated that the federal government had requested Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and Sindh to address power theft, while Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz had voluntarily started assisting the federal government in this effort.

Leghari highlighted that Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) and tribal areas incur annual losses of Rs137 billion. He noted that, excluding Karachi, every year, Sindh loses Rs51 billion to electricity theft, Punjab Rs133 billion, and Balochistan suffers Rs100 billion in losses. Specifically, Rs65 billion worth of electricity is pilfered in Peshawar, Mardan, Dera Ismail Khan, Nowshera, and Charsadda.

Saying that the government could not single out any province for electricity theft, the power czar acknowledged there had been attempts to politicise the issue but assured addressing this menace without any political showdown.