KE employees assaulted during anti-power theft operation near Hub: spokesman

KARACHI: Several employees of K-Electric on Friday sustained injuries as unidentified men offered resistance when KE team were busy disconnecting an alleged illegally installed Pole Mounted Transformer (PMT) which was being used to steal electricity in Bela Area near Hub, under it’s service territory.

KE spokesman said that reports indicate that area residents accosted and overpowered the KE teams working in the area, surrounding them and assaulting the staff. Several employees sustained harsh injuries and the mob also snatched personal belongings before releasing them. The team has been evacuated to the city and is currently undergoing medical treatment.

Expressing alarm, spokesperson KE stated: “This incident highlights the immense difficulty and challenges of KE’s operating environment. We are extremely relieved to know that our staff has been safely evacuated and will be extending our fullest support in their recovery; we laud them for their bravery in the face of such extreme difficulties.

The area of the incident was being disconnected on account of theft of electricity via an illegally installed Pole Mounted Transformer, he said.

It is alarming that people ‘involved’ in theft of electricity resort to violence instead of cooperating with KE to become a regularised part of

the network to avail safe and reliable energy supply.

“KE strongly condemns this incident and will be pursuing legal action against the culprits. We appeal for support from law enforcement agencies in bringing those responsible to accountability,” he said.

K-Electric has been aggressively cracking down against theft of electricity across the city, with regular kunda removal drives and action against chronic defaulters.

At the same time, the utility has been setting up facilitation camps and extending support to the communities to facilitate consumers who wish to clear their dues and become regularised with their billing cycles. These efforts are a strategic part of KE’s mission to achieve a load-shed free Karachi.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021