Lesco recovers Rs130.67m from 4,808 defaulters in five days

LAHORE:Running into fifth day of recovery campaign, Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) has recovered a total of Rs130.67 million from 4,808 dead defaulters in all its circles in collaboration with Tehsildars (Recovery).

Lesco spokesman told media here Sunday that for the recovery campaign started on September 13, the Lahore Division’s Commissioner had assigned additional charge of Tehsildar Recovery (from Lesco defaulters) to relevant Tehsildars, while Lesco CEO Engineer Shahid Haidar has also designated four senior officers to assist them in the dues recovery from defaulters.

He said that during the five days of campaign, Lesco recovered a total of Rs130.67 million from 4,808 dead defaulters in all its circles. He elaborated Chief Engineer O&M (T&G) Zafar Iqbal with the support of Tehsildar City Mujahid Zia and Tehsildar Shalimar Noreez Humayun recovered outstanding dues of Rs16.67 million from 493 defaulters in Northern Circle and Rs19.38 million from 714 defaulters in Eastern Circle respectively. Similarly, Lesco Manager (Material Disposal) Engineer Anwar Wattoo along with Tehsildar Model Town Rana Arsal and Tehsildar Cantt Sajjad Qureshi recovered Rs21.54 million from 520 defaulters in Central Circle and Rs14.38 million from 430 defaulters in South Circle, while Manager (Technical) Engineer Muhammad Farooq with the assistance of Tehsildar Nankana Sahib Muhammad Iqbal Rasheed and Tehsildar Sheikhupura Muhammad Aslam Gujjar recovered Rs5.26 million from 305 defaulters in Nankana Circle and Rs16.34 million from 590 defaulters in Sheikhupura Circle. He added that Lesco Manager E&S (PMU) Engineer Abbas Ali in collaboration with Naib Tehsildar Kasur and Okara Mirza Zahid Baig recovered outstanding dues of Rs9.61 million from 630 defaulters in Okara Circle and Rs27.49 million from 1,126 defaulters in Kasur Circle.

On the fifth day of its recovery campaign, Lesco with the help of Tehsildars (Recovery) recovered a total of Rs19.75 million from 576 dead defaulters in its various circles of operation on Sunday.

He mentioned that on the fifth day of recovery campaign, Lesco recovered outstanding dues of Rs2.12 million from 60 defaulters in Northern Circle; Rs3.25 million from 80 defaulters in Eastern Circle; Rs4.2 million from 99 defaulters in Central Circle; Rs1.57 million from 46 defaulters in South Circle, Rs1.21 million from 49 defaulters in Nankana Circle, Rs1.64 million from 67 defaulters in Sheikhupura Circle, Rs1.35 million from 115 defaulters in Okara Circle and Rs4.41 million from 60 defaulters in Kasur Circle.

Lesco CEO said that the company was facing loss due to dead defaulters, and vowed to continue action against them. Top 100 defaulters in each circle owed total outstanding dues of Rs4.545 billion to Lesco, he added. Arshad Khokhar arrested

Lesco Burj Attari Sub-Division caught Arshad Khokhar stealing electricity directly from the transmission line for a tube-well. The Lesco spokesman said that the inspection team disconnected power supply to Arshad Khokhar and got him arrested by area police after registration of an FIR in this regard.

The Lesco also charged Rs1.4 million to the accused as detection bill, he said and added that Arshad Khokhar was also found listed in the dead defaulters’ record and owed outstanding dues of Rs850,000 to Lesco.

Earlier, Lesco detected a total of 4,451 connections from where the customers were pilfering electricity during 11 days of grand operations in all its circles. The Lesco spokesman told media here Sunday that the company has so far submitted FIR applications against 3,845 electricity thieves, out of which 2,730 FIRs were registered in respective police stations, while 224 accused were arrested. The spokesman said that all the electricity thieves were charged so far with 9,622,164 detection units amounting to Rs409.452 million.

Grand anti-power theft operations against electricity thieves are being conducted on the directives of the Federal Power Division and the Lesco CEO is supervising these operations. Lesco chief vowed that the operations would continue without discrimination until the complete end of electricity theft. The electricity pilferers as well as the LESCO officers and employees who facilitate them would also be brought to justice.

The spokesman added that Lesco found 755 connections involved in electricity theft in all its circles on the 11th consecutive day Sunday of anti-power theft campaign and also submitted FIR application against 504 electricity thieves in the respective police stations, out of which 222 FIRs were registered while 34 accused were arrested.

During the operation, he said, large agricultural and commercial consumers were also found involved in electricity theft and all of them were also disconnected and charged with detection units. Among the seized connections were 10 industrial, 72 commercial, four agricultural and 669 domestic, and all these connections were disconnected and charged with a total of 777,711 units as detection bill amounting to Rs37,491,488.

On the 11th day, Lesco charged 9,270 detection units worth Rs860,000 to commercial connection in Shah Khalid Town Ferozewala; 15,963 detection units of Rs670,450 to an agricultural connection in Ladhe area; 6,050 detection units worth Rs500,000 to a domestic connection in Ferozewala; and 4,280 units worth Rs469,582 to customers stealing electricity directly from transmission line in Ghandipura, Ferozewala.