NPCL raids uncover illegal e-rickshaw charging station, power theft in Greater Noida

The Noida Power Company Limited (NPCL) enforcement team raided multiple villages in Greater Noida as part of an ongoing effortand discovered an illegal e-rickshaw charging station operating with stolen electricity, along with several instances of power theft, officials informed on Saturday. The raids led to the detection of unauthorised power usage across ten villages, resulting in fines totalling ₹22.60 lakh and the registration of 51 FIRs in March.

The officials said a large-scale illegal e-rickshaw charging station was operating in Habibpur village, where nine vehicles were found being charged using stolen electricity. “In Habibpur, an illegal e-rickshaw charging station was being operated using stolen electricity. Despite having a legal electricity connection, the accused, identified as Pankit, had illegally connected high-capacity cables to steal 32 kilowatts (kW) of electricity,” said NPCL spokesperson Manoj Jha.

Two other cases of power theft were also uncovered in Habibpur. Officials identified a man named Rajkumar, who was allegedly rerouting 16kW of electricity from power lines to his premises, while another individual, Ajay Kumar, was caught stealing 11kW. Both had illegal cable connections despite holding authorised power connections, NPCL officials added.

Similarly, power theft was detected in Haldoni village, where a man named Mohammad Kaptaan was found illegally using 7kW of electricity, according to NPCL officials. “Following this, an FIR has been registered against all accused at the district’s anti-power theft police station. The campaign against power theft will continue, and strict action will be taken,” added Jha.

The enforcement team conducted raids in Habibpur, Haldoni, Khanpur, Sirsa, Maicha, Kherli Hafizpur, Bilaspur, Ghodi Bachheda, Sakipur, Aimanabad, and Safipur villages, where power theft was detected. Officials reported that a total of 200 cases of power theft have been uncovered in March alone across Greater Noida. The NPCL currently provides electricity to approximately 170,000 consumers in the region, officials said.