Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh East Zone Electricity Distribution Company has successfully completed 100 days since the launch of V-Mitra, a social audit mobile application that empowers citizens to report electricity theft and irregularities while earning rewards.
Launched with the slogan “Give Information, Get Rewarded,” the V-Mitra app has registered a total of 30,000 cases within its first 100 days. Investigations into 17,200 of these cases revealed irregularities in 3,850 instances.
To recognize and encourage public participation, citizens who reported valid cases through the app received rewards totaling Rs 15.5 lakh across 3,150 cases, all without the need to visit any office in person.
The V-Mitra app achieved a 22% strike rate, significantly higher than the approximately 7% strike rate observed in smart meter data analysis cases handled by various agencies.
Penalties and recoveries
During this period, the billing for identified electricity theft and irregularities amounted to Rs 4.64 crore, with Rs 23 lakh successfully recovered from offenders. Additionally, disciplinary actions were taken against electrical staff in areas where irregularities were found.
The initiative also led to the registration of 3,100 new consumer cases and load increase requests, highlighting growing consumer engagement and awareness about ethical electricity usage.
