Odisha: Report electricity theft, get rewarded by CESU

In a bid to control power theft, Central Electricity Supply Utility (CESU), Odisha is seeking to reward people for reporting power theft cases while keeping their identity a secret.

CESU is going to seek public participation along with the 5T Method of governance, promoted by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to deal with the power theft. The new initiative also aims at controlling the losses of companies, in order to provide better electricity supply and services to the consumers of Odisha.

The 5Ts aim at achieving progress through Transparency, Teamwork, Technology, Time and Transformation.

"Due to these power theft issues, almost all the companies are facing losses, not only in a particular state but across the country. There are a few companies that are gaining profits. So, this is a big challenge for us along with other challenges," said Arun Bothra, CESU CEO.

"We (CESU) have 27 lakh consumers in the state. We are not able to keep a regular track of the people who are indulging in power theft. Some of the non-consumers are also doing the same. So, we need public participation to deal with this problem," he added.

"For that, we will be rewarding the people who will report to us regarding power theft issues. If an electricity theft is detected, complainants will get 10 per cent of the penalty amount. However, informers' personal details will be kept a secret," he also said.

Bothra further went on to say that CESU and other electricity companies will benefit from adopting the 5T initiative. The 5T method has all the benefits which CESU needs for providing better services, like the use of technology, transparency, amongst other things.