20 power theft cases detected in Barnala circle; Rs 6.5L fine imposed

The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) checked 1,273 power connections in Barnala on Tuesday. It found 20 cases of power theft during the inspection. Barnala Deputy Chief Engineer Tej Bansal said that 915 connections were inspected in Malerkotla, 278 in Barnala city, and 80 in Barnala suburbs.

He added that the defaulters were charged with a total of Rs 6.58 lakh. According to information, 41 cases of unauthorised use of electricity (UUE) were also found, leading to charges of Rs 95,000, along with a case of unauthorised electricity (UE), amounting to a penalty of Rs 40,000

Bansal urged the consumers to get their power connections regularised to avoid penalties and

legal action.

He further stated that the PSPCL had introduced a one-time settlement (OTS) scheme to assist the defaulting consumers, which offered surcharge waivers and a 50 per cent interest relief on the principal amount of the outstanding bills as of September

30, 2023. The settlement scheme was open to domestic, commercial, and industrial consumers.