HYDERABAD, Sept 6: District Nazim Hyderabad Kanwar Naveed Jamil has told the Hesco authorities to avoid issuing detection bills to consumers.

This practice, he said, had not only created resentment among people, but also affected the credibility of the organization.

Presiding over a meeting about the issuance of detection bills here on Tuesday at the nazim secretariat, he advised the Hesco officials not to issue any detection bill without the witness of the union council nazim concerned and mentioning specific causes of detection charges in advance.

Since Hesco had installed all crystal meters on electric polls, consumers were not responsible for tampering and paying detection bills issued to them by the authority concerned only to cover the line losses due to technical faults and malpractices of Hesco employees.

He asked the Hesco authorities to examine all detection bills issued till date, jointly with the UC nazims concerned and settle all disputed bills within 15 days through one-window service at the UC level in the district.

The nazim advised the organisation to coordinate with the taluka and UC nazims and prepare strategy for joint visit to inspect alleged illegal electricity connections and take action against people involving in power theft.

He held out assurance that the district government would cooperate with the Hesco management in checking power theft and recovery of outstanding dues, but would not allow any organization to fleece innocent citizens.

The nazim asked the officers concerned to concentrate on plugging the line losses due to power theft and bring organisational reforms instead of wasting their time and energy on issuing detection bills.

He said institutions were not for employees, but the employees were for the institutions that were established by the government for the welfare of the people.

He also advised them that any shutdown of electricity for repair and maintenance might also be implemented in consultation with nazims and businessmen of the area.

He said installation of electric polls in the middle of roads were posing threat to citizens and traffic and asked the officials to plan removal of such polls from roads and thickly populated area on no-profit no-loss basis, for which the district government would bear the expenses.

Speaking on the occasion, MPA Aslam Pervez stressed for evolving a workable modern system within Hesco to avoid the menace of detection bills.

He said that only power thefts were not responsible for the line losses, but technical faults and organisational irregularities were its part.

The superintending engineer of the Hyderabad Hesco Circle-I, Habibullah Khilji, said Hesco was facing losses of 27 per cent to 32 per cent due to electricity thefts, technical faults and administrative irregularities.

He said that in this a situation, Hesco was not in a position to bring about structural and other reforms. He, however, said that administrative steps were being taken

The lawmaker sought administrative support from the district government in recoveries and action against electricity thieves.

The superintending engineer of the Hesco Circle-II, Shaikh Nazir Ahmed, admitted that a large number of people were facing detection bills issued on account of meter tampering and added that Hesco employees were also involved in the practice of line losses through power thefts.

The district nazim asked the Hesco authorities and union council and taluka nazims to workout other proposals and find solution on permanent basis.