MUMBAI: The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has launched aggressive vigilance drives against power pilferage across the island city, but the utility finds itself largely powerless when collecting dues.Over the past two years, BEST booked 3,669 electricity theft cases and slapped offenders with penalties totaling Rs 54.25 crore.However, Rs 42.23 crore—nearly 78% of the assessed fines—remains uncollected, deepening the cash-strapped transporter’s fiscal crisis.
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With an overall recovery rate of just 22%, the undertaking has managed to claw back only Rs 12.02 crore. The pilferage trail stretches across diverse urban pockets, ranging from dense slum clusters to commercial hubs and industrial units.Central Mumbai’s F-North ward (Matunga, Sion, Wadala) recorded the highest caseload with 1,225 detections and Rs 6.5 crore pending. In neighbouring G-North (Dharavi, Mahim, Dadar), BEST detected 1,013 cases, leaving an eye-watering Rs 12.3 crore unrecovered. Further south in Byculla (E ward), 511 cases led to an unrecovered backlog of Rs 14.9 crore. Even affluent precincts like Colaba, Fort, and Churchgate accounted for Rs 1.6 crore in unpaid fines.Offenders routinely exploit systemic loopholes to dodge payments. Many pay an initial fraction of the fine to restore power under an installment agreement, only to default immediately afterward. In other instances, when vigilance squads confiscate rigged meters, consumers simply abandon the connection instead of paying, tying the utility up in prolonged legal disputes.A BEST committee panel has urged the administration to overhaul its recovery mechanism, initiate fast-track legal interventions, and pursue pending dues aggressively.“While vigilance drives and detection mechanisms are important to curb power theft, equal emphasis must be placed on ensuring timely recovery of dues,” said BEST committee member Ramakant Gupta, warning that holding chronic offenders accountable is vital to safeguarding public revenue.
