ISLAMABAD
\nPakistan People\u2019s Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani on Tuesday castigated country\u2019s power distribution companies (Discos) for overcharging consumers, saying that action should be initiated against them for the \u2018criminal activity\u2019.
\nThe statement came after the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) exposed the \u201cmost controversial power theft drive\u201d of the power distribution companies (Discos), defrauding consumers of billions of rupees by overcharging them as much as 100 percent.
\nThe regulatory authority, in its inquiry report, claimed that the distribution companies were intentionally engaging in such malpractices to conceal their inefficiencies, causing thousands of consumers to suffer from higher electricity bills.
\nIn a statement, the PPP Senator said that the NEPRA\u2019s inquiry had revealed the \u201cmother of all scams, as power firms have been skinning alive users through inflated bills\u201d. Raza Rabbani noted that the inquiry report had called into question the integrity of Discos\u2019 entire revenue stream.
\n\u201cThe report found that the actual amount charged to users differed from the snapshot of the meter reading available on the bills,\u201d he added. \u201cThe revelations in the report amount to criminal activity,\u201d Rabbani said, adding that the Discos should be proceeded against. He also demanded that the over charged amount should be adjusted against users\u2019 bills.
\nThe Senator further said that the Nepra report should be placed before the Senate to recommend what action should be taken, adding that the CEOs of the Discos should be placed on the Exit Control List.
\nThe NEPRA has found that millions of consumers were overcharged during the months of July and August, prompting the body to initiate legal action against K-Electric (KE) and other power distribution companies.
\n\u201cThere is not a single Disco in the country who is charging bills in 100pc correct manner,\u201d the power regulatory authority said in its 14-page report. The inquiry was launched after consumers from all over the country complained of \u201cexcessive, inflated, and wrong bills\u201d charged by Discos in July and August 2023.
\nFollowing the complaints, the power regulator held detailed hearings during which it found that the actual amount charged to users differed from the snapshot of meter-reading available on their bills. In some cases, snapshots were \u201ceither invisible or deliberately not taken\u201d.
\nSimilarly, some cases were reported that monthly meter readings are being taken beyond the billing cycle of 30 days, which resulted in undue\/inflated charging of upper slab bills to the less user consumer(s) hence, changing the category from protected to un-protected\u201d.
\nMultan Electric Power Com\u00adpany (Mepco), Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco), Quetta Electric Supply Company (Qesco) and Sukkur Electric Power Company (Sepco) sent the most bills with invalid snapshots.
\nAs per the notified tariff terms and conditions, the billing period means a billing month of 30 days or less reckoned from the date of the last meter reading. However, the above findings showed that billing cycles carried out by different DISCOs range from 30 days to 40 days and in some instances, even more.
\nThe authority said it is \u201calarmingly noted\u201d that thousands of consumers were charged for more than 40 days of billing. The allegations have been levelled at a time when the Discos are carrying out a countrywide campaign against power theft.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Pakistan People\u2019s Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani on Tuesday castigated country\u2019s power distribution companies (Discos) for overcharging consumers, saying that action should be initiated against them for the \u2018criminal activity\u2019. The statement came after the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) exposed the \u201cmost controversial power theft drive\u201d of the power distribution companies (Discos), […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-372466","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n