12 families duped, given illegal power connections in Kakori

Lucknow: At least 12 households in New Faridipur colony in

Kakori

were duped on the pretext of providing electricity connections under the government’s flagship scheme Saubhagya Yojana.

Interestingly, the victims of fraud had been receiving genuine electricity bills which they had been paying.

The fraud came to light on Friday after the Lucknow Electricity Supply Administration (Lesa), led by junior engineer of Dubagga power house, snapped the supply following discom’s probe.

The affected residents are likely to lodge an FIR at Kakori police station on Monday against unidentified Lesa staff who were allegedly involved in issuing electricity connections and bills.

They are also expected to meet Lesa officials before filing the FIR.

New Faridipur is an underdeveloped area with no road, sewer or water supply.

Talking to TOI, Imran, a victim of the fraud, said: “Each household had paid Rs 35,000 for power connection to one Rishabh Singh, who claimed to be associated with Lesa. For last several months, we had been receiving electricity bills from MVVNL and paying it on time. However, a Lesa team snapped our power supply claiming that our connections are illegal.”

All the defaulting household were receiving power from just one transformer with power cables hanging on bamboos. Electricity meters were also installed for billing.

Executive engineer PK Singh of EDD-II CESS said, “The connections provided to New Faridipur residents were given under Saubhagya Yojana, which is meant only for rural areas at no cost. New Faridipur comes under urban area. It was found during the audit that residents got connection from a transformer which was 300-500 metres from their home against the laid norms of 40 metres.”

“Since the residents have been duped by an outsider, we have asked them to lodge FIR and apply for new power connections. New transformer, concrete pillars and power cables will be installed for which an estimate will be given to those applying for connection,” he said.

Asked why Lesa was recovering bills from illegal connections, he said an internal inquiry was on to ascertain how IDs were generated for generation of power bills. “Action will be taken against the staff involved in the fraud,” he said.

A similar fraud was reported from Dubagga area four months ago.


Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.