Iesco stood on top in the wake of its plausible performance to limit losses, improve recoveries and act in line with the timeframe for new connections. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD:
Electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) were involved in an over-invoicing scam worth Rs 47 billion to hide inefficiencies, electricity theft and line losses, audit officials told a sub-committee of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday.
The PAC subcommittee looked into the issue of overbilling caused by incorrect meter readings. Audit officials revealed that Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) accounted for Rs 45 billion. of overbilling, followed by Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco), which overbilled consumers by Rs1.56 billion.
According to the Power Division secretary, 278,649 consumers received excessive electricity bills of Rs 47 billion in a single month. He said smart meters and transformer-based metering systems were installed to prevent such incidents, adding that no complaints of over-billing have been received since their introduction.
Audit officials told the meeting that lower-level DISCO employees involved in meter reading had been responsible for the overbilling because they exercised excessive discretionary powers. They said paying consumers were deliberately overbilled to hide power theft and line loss, while refunds were only issued to consumers who formally filed complaints.
PAC members also noted that power companies had overbilled consumers for 904 million electricity units in just one month. Senator Afnanullah criticized the staff involved and said these figures only represented the cases that had been detected. “We don’t know how many consumers are overbilled each month,” he said.
“If a person earning only Rs. 20,000 a month receives an electricity bill of Rs. 100,000, it can lead them to electricity theft,” he said, adding, “People sell gold they had saved for their daughters’ weddings just to pay electricity bills.”
Responding to the Power Division secretary, committee member Saleem Mandviwalla said: “It is easy for you to say this, but have you considered how consumers would have to borrow money to pay these inflated bills? We have been hearing for the last 20 years that smart meters will be installed.”
Lesco’s chief executive said over-invoicing in the company’s service area had now been reduced to zero. He claimed that electricity theft had been significantly curbed with the help of Rangers. For the first time, he added, one executive engineer (XEN) and seven subdivisional officers (SDOs) had been dismissed from service.
The sub-committee also reviewed an audit finding that revealed embezzlement of Rs 1.06 billion in the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) service area through payments to ghost and retired employees. The audit report said the fraud involved collusion between a drawing and disbursing officer (DDO), an XEN and the office of the chief financial officer (CFO).
