The electricity consumers of the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) are receiving overbilling for two months, saying that the Company is hiding inefficiencies of field staff, shortage of recoveries and high line losses by sending them inflated bills. "The electricity bills for the months of August and September do not match with the units consumed by the consumers," said one citizen who pointed out that the Company avoided sending him a bill for August while a combined bill sent in October that he was unable to pay.
The LESCO sources have said that the Company has dispatched inflated bills to consumers to meet recovery and line loss targets. It may be noted that the ministry of water and power had shunted out some 54 employees of distribution companies for their inefficiencies a few months back. "It is followed by a discreet move of overbilling the consumers on the part of distribution companies including LESCO, GEPCO and MEPCO to save their skin," they added.
According to a report prepared by the Pakistan Electric Power Company, the LESCO has committed to achieve 99 percent recovery for current fiscal against 92.56 percent in corresponding period, followed by GEPCO committing 100 percent against 94 percent last year and three percent increase in FESCO region.
"Similar high targets have been set by the managements of Islamabad, Multan and Hyderabad distribution companies for which the consumers are being screwed up badly," said one furious consumer. "We are being treated as sacrificial animals by the distribution companies to improve their recoveries and bring down line losses," he added. Interestingly, the consumers' cries are falling on the deaf ear of the LESCO management, as no tangible step has been taken so far.
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