KARACHI: Temporary electricity connection in 24 hours
KARACHI, Nov 14: The Karachi Electric Supply Corporation has devised an ‘Immediate electricity connection policy’ for night cricket matches, religious congregations, social functions and Bachat Bazaars to prevent power theft on public occasions, said a KESC spokesman on Thursday.
All KESC zonal managers had been asked to issue an immediate connection for temporary use within 24 hours of the application and payment of charges.
He said the policy had been devised on public demand and from henceforth any person or organization engaged in healthy public activity using electricity would have to follow this policy. Nepra approved tariff for temporary load connection would be applied for billing.
Checking of electricity use during the night is already being carried out by the army monitoring teams. Besides, surveillance and theft deduction teams have also been inducted to carry out night raids to check misuse of electricity.
Meanwhile, KESC Managing Director Brig Tariq Saddozai has instructed every employee of the KESC that they keep an eye on power theft during their normal movement in the city and immediately report the illegal use.
The KESC management has also requested the parents of night cricket playing youngsters to advise their children not to use Kundas for matches. Otherwise they would be arrested and a heavy penalty levied for their release.
Noted religious scholars have already provided Fatwa to the KESC that illegal use of electricity for religious activity is forbidden. Anybody using hook connections in mosques or other places for religious congregations would also be arrested and penalized.
Similarly, for other social or recreational activity Kunda connections would be checked and charged for.
INQUIRY: Lt-Col Asif, circle commander of the army monitoring teams, has completed the inquiry in case of manhandling and unlawful confinement and causing injury to a KESC team by an Orangi Town councillor.
A KESC spokesman said that the findings based on eye-witness accounts were that the KESC team was disconnecting supplies to the defaulters when the councillor and a few others KESC defaulters acted unlawfully.
The FIR of the matter has already been lodged in the area police station so that the illegal act of the councillor and others could be decided according to the law. However, the defaulters of the area have paid the KESC bills.
A KESC teams consisting of lineman Mohammad Kalim, worker Akhtar Ayub and driver Khalid Baloch had gone to disconnect the supply of meter Nos AL-454233 and AL-441022 due to non-payment of outstanding dues of Rs16,811 and Rs10,528 respectively.
When the supply was being disconnected Nadeem, resident of survey No 1343, attacked and beat up KESC staff seriously, injuring Akhtar Ayub and Mohammad Kaleem, who were later admitted to hospital.
People of the area gathered and did not allow disconnection but instead detained KESC employee Akhter Ayub in the office of Abdul Ghaffar, councillor of UC-10 Orangi Town. Later, it was revealed that the councillor was himself living on the same premises.
Zonal Controller for Billing Mansoor Rahar with the army monitoring teams head, Maj Sarwar, reached the scene and got the KESC staffer released and supply of the premises (Al-454233) disconnected.
Nadeem slipped away, but councillor Abdul Ghaffar and Khursheed Alam were brought to Orangi Town Extension police station, where FIR 326/02 (dated 01.11.2002) was registered against Mohammad Nadeem, Khursheed Alam (father of Nadeem) and councillor Abdul Ghaffar. Further legal proceeding is under progress.—PPI/APP
