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Bengal proposes law to check power theft

Indrani Dutta

KOLKATA, Nov. 29

The West Bengal Government, which is now going ahead with its plan to introduce new legislation to check power theft, has decided to follow similar legislative models enacted by the government of Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.

West Bengal power department officials said that a cabinet note was now being prepared, after which it would be placed before the Legislative Assembly.

The finer details of the proposed law were worked out at a meeting of officials of the State power department alongmwith the two main power generating and distributing agencies in the State -- the West Bengal State Electricity Board (WBSEB) and the RPG - - controlled CESC. Representatives of the state-owned Durgapur Projects Ltd, which has a few units in Durgapur, were also present at the meeting. While the State Assembly will sit for a month-long session from December 7, the government will opt for the ordinance route in case the Assembly is not in session __ even after finalisation of the new law and its approval by the Cabinet.

Sources said the need for enacting a new law for checking power theft has been felt for quite sometime time. The matter gained urgency for utilities like WBSEB, which has committed itself ( in the MoU signed with the Union Power Ministry) to reducing its T & D loss from around 50 per cent now to 39 per cent by 2005.

CESC's T & D loss too has come in for rebuke from the West Bengal State Electricity Regulatory Commission (WBERC). As a matter of fact, it is the coming into being of these bodies (the regulatory commissions) which had imparted momemntum to the drive to reduce power pilferage, according to sources.`` The ERCs have made it clear that the consumers will not pay for the utility's inability to check power theft and they have generally factored this judgement into their tariff recommendations".

Sources said that power theft was identified as one of the main reasons behind the deteriorating financial health of the state power sector during the conference of chief ministers held in New delhi in March 2001. It was then revealed that reliastic asse sment of the T & D losses in states like Orissa and Andhra Pradesh revealed that actual T & D Loss was higher than original projections. Power Theft is estimated to cost the country over Rs 20,000 crore annually.

Pointing out that the existing measures were not found to be adequate while combating this menace ( which contributed largely to the T & D loss), sources said that the proposed new law envisaged the setting up of special courts to try these offenders. A fine of Rs 5,000 minimum and Rs 50,000 maximum was envisaged.

For a repeat offence the new law proposed disconnection of power supply while denying access to diesel generators.