A shocking audit report has revealed that solar panels worth more than Rs. 6.5 million were stolen from 50 government schools in Rajanpur district of Punjab during the 2022-23 fiscal year, triggering alarm in the Punjab Assembly.
The startling disclosure was presented to the Public Accounts Committee-III, which voiced grave concern over the security breach and warned that the thefts might not be limited to Rajanpur alone. The committee swiftly ordered a province-wide police investigation to assess the extent of the losses.
Committee member Tanveer Aslam Malik demanded strict accountability, urging the issuance of directives to District Police Officers in affected areas. He further pressed officials to provide a detailed list of the targeted schools and to clarify whether any of the stolen panels had been recovered.
Education Department officials confirmed that FIRs had been lodged, but the Audit Department pointed fingers at local education authorities, criticizing them for failing to enforce even basic protective measures for the government-installed solar systems.
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The large-scale theft has raised pressing questions about the protection of public infrastructure projects in remote districts, with lawmakers calling for urgent reforms to prevent similar lapses in the future.