The Kashmir power Distribution Corporation Limited has started a campaign to penalise illegal users. A welcome step. Hooking is an endemic problem in Jammu and Kashmir. Stealing electricity is not considered any sin here. In fact, people usually say that this is our electricity and therefore it is our right to steal it, or not to pay dues!
Also, whenever any campaign was started to stop this stealing people would quickly put the poor people in their discourse and ask: what will happen to the poor people? How will they survive if the fee is increased, if areas are metered, or insulated cables are put? What will happen to the poor people is a common refrain when it comes to stop electricity stealing. And when we don’t get electricity or there are prolonged power shutdowns all the fault is rested on the shoulders of KPDCL.
What will happen to the poor?
We have been hearing that if Kashmiris do not steal electricity or are not given it freely the poor people of Kashmir will die of cold! Often this argument is used by those people who have palatial houses or bungalows, and steal electricity as a matter of their birth right. Often, they don’t use electricity they abuse it by paying a meagre fee of Rs 500-1500. If only these palatial house/bungalow owners pay their dues according to their electricity use, the poor people will also get electricity.
We are the same people while constructing huge houses we don’t think of any poor, while throwing lavish wedding parties we don’t think of any poor, while bringing cars we don’t think of the poor, while admitting our wards in posh schools, or professional colleges we don’t think of any poor, while buying high end smartphones we don’t think of the poor people. But when it comes to the electricity, we bring up the poor people, as if 90 percent population of Kashmir is living below the poverty line.
For those who don’t know the KPDCL has kept a provision for BPL people wherein the latter has to pay less than the average consumers! But here even that is not acceptable because stealing electricity has become our birth right. Kashmir is not the only place where we face harsh winters. Even harsher winters exist in this world but hardly you see this ruse used to steal electricity.
As the KPDCL shows on its social media accounts these gareeb people indulging in blatant stealing one is amazed to see how is the former able to supply electricity to its consumers!
Our electricity!
A decade ago, I was also of the opinion that since it’s our resources that are used to make electricity we should pay less fee than the others. An internet search of many states and union territories of India makes it amply clear that the per unit rates of electricity in Kashmir is far less than in those places. Here you can find all the states and UTs tariff rates: https://www.bijlibachao.com/news/domestic-electricity-lt-tariff-slabs-and-rates-for-all-states-in-india-in.html.
As the majority of people here claim that it is our electricity and why should we be charged for it, let me try to give an example. One person from your family opens up a bakery shop. He employs a few persons to sell its merchandise. Now as a family member, I take things free from this shop. My brothers, sisters, cousins, aunties, uncles, and friends also take things here for free. All of them say this is our shop, why should we pay. Now tell me how much will this shop prosper. Who will pay for employees of the shop? Who will pay to keep its machinery running? Our power projects are like this. We are already given subsidised rates and 10 percent free power.
The fault does not lie with the KPDCL. It cannot do anything about agreements that the government makes. The earlier political governments of Jammu and Kashmir failed to extract a people friendly policy about electricity. There were accusations and counter-accusations by these governments against each other of taking kickbacks in lieu of these power projects.
The KPDCL should continue its campaign and penalise heavily these thieves, and if government employees are caught stealing, their increments should be stopped and it should enter their service books
The fault lies with us. We cannot justify stealing and make it socially permissible.