Approximately 8,000 First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered in one month against power thieves in Punjab, Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Saturday.
In a Tweet, the prime minister congratulated the Power Minister & his Ministry over their performance in compliance with his instructions.
The prime minister said that the Power Division acted upon his directives within one month, resulting in reduction of line loses by 1.5 percent and saving of Rs 2 billion. He said that additional Rs 11 billion outstanding dues have been recovered.
Imran Khan said that a total of Rs 13 billion went into the national exchequer as a result of initiatives taken within a month.
I want to congratulate the Power Minister & his Ministry. One of the reasons for expensive electricity and load shedding is power theft. pic.twitter.com/cIoGshcANV
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) December 1, 2018
Moreover, the prime minister also told that the recovery drive through the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province will begin from today.
The prime minister said that approximately 8,000 FIRs have been registered against power thieves in Punjab. He said that even Power Distribution Companies (DISCOS) Staff, who are complicit with the thieves, have not been spared and FIRs have been registered against them as well.
On October 22, while presiding over a meeting in Islamabad, Prime Minister Imran Khan ordered an immediate countrywide crackdown on electricity theft and line losses.
“It is unacceptable to make people pay for the cost of theft and mismanagement of others”, the prime minister said.
The prime minister in another meeting held on Friday (yesterday) expressed concerns over the quantum of power theft, and said that it was unacceptable that those who regularly pay their dues have to face inconvenience of load shedding because of theft by some elements.