UP: Five arrested for stealing overhead wires in Etah

AGRA: While government run power discom DVVNL continues to implement state’s ambitious project to electrify every household of UP’s villages, in Etah district an inter-district gang was caught undoing government’s effort to make hefty profit for themselves.
According to police, last Thursday the gang stole 600 meter long overhead wire weighing two quintals from Nagla Fule and Nazirpur villages (Sakeet police jurisdiction) after pulling down newly installed nine electric poles with the help of leverage and ropes.
DVVNL had installed the poles and overhead wires to connect it with sub-power station under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana, a government project designed to provide continuous power supply to remote villages.
On Monday Etah district police claimed that after a brief encounter on Sunday night Malawan police busted a six member gang and nabbed five men including Ramakant, a welder of Balekshwar of New Agra, who used his backyard to hide the stolen overhead wires and later smuggled it into national capital via road transport services.
The other gang members were identified as Rameshwar Singh of Matsena, Wasim Khan of Linepar and Sonu Kumar of Uttar. All the three hailed from Firozabad district, while the fifth associate Malikhan Singh hailed from Sasani, Hathras district.
The sixth accused Layak Singh of Rasoolpur, Firozabad is absconding.
According to police, the gang were prevalent in Etah, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Mathura and Hathras. “The stolen wires were sold in national capital to either metal scrap dealer or those involved in business of electric cable. The gang were very swift in executing their task. After conducting recce of an area, the gang would target those wires which would supply power to remote villages or were newly installed. The gang would pull down the row of electric poles and collect the wire to immediately load into mini trucks to smuggle in Delhi,” said station house officer Praveen Kumar Singh. "On October 5, the project manager Yashwant Singh Chauhan of power discom filed an FIR in Sakeet police station about theft of 600 meter long over head wire, after which a look out was issued to bust the gang," added the SHO.
Police claimed, that every accused of the gang had at least nine criminal cases against them.