NOIDA: Uttar Pradesh power minister
Shrikant Sharma said on Saturday that the government’s plan to allocate one
police station
in each of the 75 districts to deal with
power theft
complaints would be implemented by the first week of February.
The
minister
said the power department was facing losses to the tune of Rs 7,200 crore because of theft.
TOI had reported on Saturday that the UP Power Corporation Limited owes Rs 3,500 crore to four power plants.
“By February first week, a separate police station will be allocated in each district. This should be completed by the first week of February. At least one vigilance team will be given in each district,” Sharma said during an interaction with officials at the Power Management Institute in Film City.
In an interview to this newspaper in May last year, the minister had first announced the plan for separate police stations for power-theft related complaints.
He was presiding over a one-day workshop organised for Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY), launched by the Centre for a financial revival of the power sector.
When asked if the state will seek support from the central government to cover the losses, Sharma said the state will have to cover the losses on its own.