Electricity theft, also known as hooking, or kunda system in local language, is a chronic issue throughout Pakistan. Street protests in Pakistan for

power outages A power outage, also called a blackout, a power failure, a power blackout, a power loss, a power cut, or a power out is the complete loss of the electrical power network supply to an end user. There are many causes of power failures in an el ...

and poor grid performance are common. Despite public pressure, the

government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

has failed to resolve the issue, and has been criticised for its responses to victims of electricity supply shortages.

Electricity theft

In 2013, it was declared in the

Senate of Pakistan The Senate of Pakistan, Constitution of Pakistan, constitutionally the House of the Federation, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan. As of 2023, It has a maximum membership of 96, of which 92 are elected by the Member of th ...

, that Pakistan had lost Rs90 billion (equivalent to

₨ The rupee sign "₨" is a currency sign used to represent the monetary unit of account in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Mauritius, Seychelles, and formerly in India. It resembles, and is often written as, the Latin character sequence "Rs", of whi ...

billion in ) in the last 5 years to electricity theft and line losses.

Power supply to Karachi

K-Electric K-Electric Limited (KE), formerly known as Karachi Electric Supply Company Limited or Karachi Electric Supply Corporation Limited, is a Pakistani utility company based in Karachi. Privatised in 2005, KE is the only vertically integrated utili ...

is a successor to KESC which was its original name for more than 70 years. It is integrated in generation, transmission and distribution to the whole Karachi city and its surroundings. Post 1990 it was placed under

WAPDA The Pakistan Water & Power Development Authority (), colloquially known as WAPDA, is a Pakistani government-owned public utility agency maintaining hydropower and water in Pakistan, although it does not manage thermal power plants. WAPDA includes ...

control with the company's share price at Rs.160/- in stock market. According to the

Pakistan Observer ''Pakistan Observer'' is an English-language daily newspaper of Pakistan. It is published from six cities – Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta and Muzaffarabad. The newspaper was founded in 1988 by Zahid Malik. The newspaper wa ...

, WAPDA poorly managed KESC, resulting in its later privatisation.

Lack of access to power

According to estimates published in 2012-13, there were approximately 483 Katchi Abadis (

informal settlements Informal housing or informal settlement can include any form of housing, shelter, or settlement (or lack thereof) which is illegal, falls outside of government control or regulation, or is not afforded protection by the state. As such, the info ...

) in Karachi prior to 1990; residents of such localities do not have legal right to have civic facilities and basic living provisions such as electricity/water from government departments. According to the Chairman of Standing Committee on Urban Development of the

Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry Since its inception in 1950, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI) has advocated and voiced the collective opinion, concern and aspiration of the private sector and offered helpful advice and solid assistance to the Go ...

, this has now grown to over 4,700 settlements.

Monopoly and international competition

Artificial reasons of theft

Difference in time of load-shedding Many illegal ‘Kunda’ connections are overloading K-Electric's network, as well as causing financial losses. One method of getting electricity into the Kunda system is accessing a nearby area where timing of two neighborhoods are different for load shedding.

More consumption versus higher cost

One reason for electricity theft is that, whilst usage is increasing, costs have also risen. In 2009 a religious decree was issued in prohibiting theft of electricity.

Anti-theft measures

In 2014 the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

issued an ordinance defining punishments for electricity thieves, with context specific punishments. K-Electric has introduced technologies that it says will remove "Kunda system and electricity theft". This program known as the Area Bundle Cable (ABC) System, has so far been installed in Kiamari area of Karachi and there are plans for the entire city is to be covered in the future.

References

{{Reflist, colwidth=30em Electric power in Pakistan Crime in Pakistan Theft