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A report presented by the FIA to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources accuses the monitoring staff of the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited of being involved in the theft in different areas and the magnitude of the fraud indicated culpability of the company's management.
The FIA has named six SNGPL officers involved in gas theft in Punjab and the NWFP. The agency said its report was based on observation and monitoring of several installations.
The report says that the SNGPL personnel who were paid millions of rupees by CNG stations and owners of some industrial units were living a luxurious life.
'The meter checking staff of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines is involved in this criminal act by fixing remote-controlled electronic devices for reversing and stopping meters,' the report said.
It said that almost 70 per cent of initially estimated Rs11.1 billion losses had been caused by CNG stations, 20 per cent by industrial units and 10 per cent by commercial and domestic consumers.
The FIA has suggested a survey of all the CNG stations which offered discounts which the report suspects to be the main culprit.
The report also suggests a synchronised action in different cities and special monitoring of large gas consumers.
Acting on FIA's findings, the petroleum ministry has constituted a co-mmittee headed by Director (technical) Mansoor Muzafar. It will present its report by the end of the current month.
Members of the committee said they expected strict action against the SNGPL staff involved in the theft.
However, some sources in the ministry said it would be difficult to punish the people involved in the gas theft because the report could not be presented as evidence in the court of law.
An official told Dawn that the committee would recommend arrest of owners of the CNG stations and industrial units found involved in tampering with meters under Section 409 of the PPC.
According to informed sources, the petroleum ministry has acknowledged that top SNGPL officials were involved in the scandal.
'One of the accused nominated by the FIA in the scam was transferred to other region, but within 24 hours he got that order cancelled and is still working there,' the sources said.
