The number of instances where farmers have been stealing power in the state has risen three-fold in the last three years,between July 2010 and June 2013. A total of over 1.64 lakh cases of electricity theft,worth close to Rs 100 crore,has been noticed among farmers in the state during the last 12 months,ending June 2013. This is about three times more than the 53,444 cases registered between July 2010 and June 2011,figures tabled recently in the Gujarat State Legislative Assembly reveal. Interestingly,the maximum number of power thefts among agricultural consumers have been reported from the districts in water-starved Saurashtra region of the state. In the last one year,38,900 cases of power theft was discovered in Bhavnagar alone,which is the highest to be recorded anywhere in the state. Amreli (25,100 cases),Junagadh (28,400),Rajkot (18,400) and Surendranagar ( 18,300). Over 5.64 lakh power pleas still pending In a state where power allocation to the agriculture sector has been steadily dipping over the years,there are currently over 5.64 lakh pending application from farmers who have sought power for their agriculture needs. The maximum number of pending applications are from farmers in Saurashtra region. Rajkot district has the highest backlog,where 77,480 requests from farmers are still awaiting action. Jamnagar (59,500),Junagadh (51,000),Bhavnagar (48,500) and Amreli (47,189) are among the districts in the peninsular region that have the highest numbers of pending requests,according to figures (as on March 31,2013) tabled by the state government in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly during the recent monsoon session. Apart from these districts,Banaskantha in north Gujarat with over 62,000 pending applications,is the only other district having a higher quantum of pending applications. Seeing the rising graph of backlog in applications in the agriculture sector,the state government in October announced an Immediate Power Connection Scheme 2013,which promises to dole out one lakh power connections for farmers agriculture needs in the state. However,in the last fiscal of 2012-13,only 95,844 connections were given to farmers. This is perhaps the highest number of connections provided to farmers during a particular fiscal in the last five years since 2008-09. During 2012-13,farmers in Rajkot districts got the maximum number of connections (12187),while the lowest numbers were seen in the districts of Dangs (181),Patan (442) and Gandhinagar (464). In the district of Narmada,946 power connections were given to farmers during the year. The state government figures also show that the power allocated to agricultural consumers have been steadily declining in Gujarat. In a span of ten years from the year 2002 to 2012 the electricity consumption by industries in the state have increased three-fold,while that consumed by farmers have dropped by 11%. The number of FIRs registered against erring farmers have also risen by 55% in these three years where a total of 17,400 cases filed between July 2010 and June 2013. In comparison,the instances of power theft reported from industries have been on a decline during the same three-year period in Gujarat. Compared to 2092 cases registered three years back,the cases of power theft has halved to 1,038 cases during the last 12 months,ending June 2013. Even among the industrial sector,the power thefts were mostly seen in the Saurashtra region. Junagadh district,which has over 7,000 registered units that largely function in the agriculture,mineral and chemical sector,saw the highest 260 cases of power thefts in the last 12 months. Other districts of Saurashtra like Bhavnagar (182 cases),Rajkot (145) and Jamnagar (83) were among the districts that recorded the maximum number of power thefts among the industries. These power thefts are recorded as Transmission and Distribution (T&D) losses of Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL),a distribution company responsible for the Saurashtra region. The T&D losses of PGVCL is about 29% which is the highest in the state, said a government official. There are about 8 lakh farmers connected with PGVCL. Only 30% of them have metered power supply. The rest are supplied power on a horse-power basis. The theft happens when these farmers have to install motors of higher capacities to draw underground water from depleting reservoirs during dry spells, said K K Bajaj,an expert on power sector and the chief general manager of city-based Consumer Education and Research Centre. Thats not all. The state government figures show that the power allocation to the agricultural consumers have been steadily declining in Gujarat,while those for industries have been increasing. For instance,power supplied to agriculture sector dipped to 19,100 million units in 2012-13,from the 19,800 million units a year ago. During the same period,the allocation to industries increased to 25,400 million units from the earlier 22,300 million units.
