It took the Prime Minister to order a probe into what was an open and badly kept secret: that there was rampant overbilling by LESCO, which was using this method to make up for electricity theft, almost entirely with the connivance of its officials. That probe found that not only was there overbilling, but the overbilled consumers then faced punitive action on the basis of these bills. There had been numerous attempts to remedy this situation, including taking a snapshot at the time of meter-reading, and including this in the bill. The only problem was that these photos were illegible, according to an investigation ordered by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority itself. A subsequent probe by the Power Division itself had revealed even more overbilling, with the result that NEPRA had arranged a return of the overbilled amounts to the consumers. This sorry tale came to light as NEPRA when it held a meeting to consider a DISCO request for a tariff cut of Rs 1.80 per unit to refund consumers Rs 53.4 billion because of savings in capacity payments in the quarter just concluded.
The LESCO overbilling finding, and the subsequent action against LESCO officials, was disclosed by the Additional Secretary Power to the meeting. This naturally raises the question of what is happening in the other distribution companies. It cannot be stressed too much that overbilling is integral to corruption in all DISCOs, and if overbilling is stopped, the consumer will be protected from the direct effects of the corruption which has led to DISCO officials being perceived as among the most corrupt of government officials. There will then remain the awarding of contracts, and acquisition of equipment, which are highly lucrative. However, the consumers pay only indirectly, in the shape of inefficient and inadequate service, so it is not as bad.
In the power sector, this is the government’s next frontier. Overbilling is a scourge which not only creates pathways for corruption, but is also unfair, for it means that honest consumers, or at least those too scared to steal or default, have to pay for power used by the thieves. It should also be considered what role is played by giving free electricity, for those getting it will not see overbilling as a problem, since they do not have to pay the penalty.
