Punjab Newsline

PSEB Engineers demand the arrest of person stealing power
VINOD KUMAR GUPTA
Thursday, 18 February 2010
PATIALA: PSEB Engineers Association has demanded that the owner of the industrial unit at Rajpura caught stealing power be arrested and condemned the tendency of management to find scapegoats.

An owner of Industrial unit at Rajpura was caught stealing power in the biggest power theft in the history of state and FIR was registered against him. His bail application has been rejected by the sessions court.

The regional meeting of association which was held today criticized the management which is targeting selected officials in a totally biased, arbitrary and dictatorial manner not only to shield real culprits but to gain cheap publicity.

It may be mentioned that the power theft was being carried out by the consumer in a very sophisticated manner and only a technical team of investigators can unearth the wrong doing by the firm.

An enquiry team comprising of Chief Engineer/Enforcement and Chief Engineer/Operation was constituted to submit their report. The technical team submitted its report within 3 days. The technical member of PSEB made comments on the report which was put up to Chairman which did not indict any officer.

Some officers were selected for special treatment to get To get cheap publicity; a report was obtained from vigilance wing of the Board who is not equipped to investigate such cases. On the basis of this report action has been taken against selected officers. Even the report of the vigilance wing has not been implemented in full.

The engineers condemned the tendency of the management to look for scapegoats in such cases without going after the real culprits and the consumer indulging in theft.

Board initiate disciplinary cases without bothering for its own lapses for its failure to provide required manpower, vehicles, equipment, tools & plants as per norms to these officers. More than 30% posts of subordinate staff are lying vacant.

An illusion is being deliberately created in the media that a top functionary of the Board is very serious about reducing losses and curbing theft of power whereas, in fact it is otherwise, because a number of theft cases are let off at the directions of these very functionaries.