Gujarat : Power Sector Gets Rs. 16,663 Crore Boost under RDSS

Ahmedabad : The Central Government has earmarked Rs. 16,663 crore spanning five years, commencing from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26, for the power sector in Gujarat under the revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS). This initiative, disclosed in the Rajya Sabha on December 12 by Union Minister R.K. Singh, is designed to instill financial discipline in distribution sectors and fortify infrastructure to ensure uninterrupted power supply.

The nationwide allocation stands at Rs. 3,03,758 crores with a Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) of Rs. 97,631 crores for the same five-year period.

Specifically for Gujarat, plans include deploying approximately 19.79 crore prepaid smart meters, of which 1.648 crore will be installed in the state. In the initial phase, 60.09 lakh smart meters are slated for installation, followed by an additional 1.05 crore in the subsequent phase.

Responding to Rajya Sabha MP Parimal Nathwani’s inquiry about Power Ministry schemes since 2018, Minister Singh outlined goals, achievements, and financial allocations for various initiatives. The RDSS also encompasses deploying about 52 lakh Distribution Transformer (DT) smart meters and 1.88 lakh feeder smart meters, with Gujarat set to incorporate 3,00,487 DT smart meters and 5,229 feeder smart meters.

These smart metering strategies aim to enhance energy accounting accuracy, identify high-loss areas, and streamline operations. Approved Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) totaling Rs. 1,21,778 crore for Loss Reduction (LR) works and Rs. 1,30,474 crore for smart metering across India were highlighted in Singh’s statement.

Of the total RDSS sanctioned amount, Rs. 5,897.22 crore has been disbursed following scheme guidelines, including Rs. 308 crore for Gujarat in the last two years and the ongoing year.

Minister Singh emphasized the continuation of RDSS until FY 2025-26, targeting a reduction in AT&C losses to 12-15 percent nationwide and the elimination of ACS-ARR gaps by 2024-25.

These measures intend to bolster DISCOMs’ financial viability and enhance the power sector. Notably, initiatives under RDSS have already reduced DISCOMs’ AT&C losses from 22.32 percent in FY2021 to 16.44 percent in FY2022, concurrently narrowing the ACS-ARR gap from Rs. 0.69/kWh to Rs. 0.15/kWh in the same period.