Union Minister Manohar Lal: The supply hours in rural areas have risen from 12.5 hours in 2014 to 22.4 hours currently.
The Consultative Committee meeting for the Ministry of Power was held in New Delhi on January 16, 2025, chaired by Union Minister Shri Manohar Lal, responsible for Power and Housing & Urban Affairs. The meeting focused on the “Implementation of the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS).” Minister of State for Power and New and Renewable Energy, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik, was also present. Other attendees included Members of the Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Power, Shri Pankaj Agarwal, Secretary (Power), and senior officials from the Ministry of Power, along with the Chairperson of the CEA and CMDs of REC Ltd and Power Finance Corporation Ltd.
Union Minister Shri Manohar Lal emphasized the crucial role the power sector plays in fostering industrial growth and economic development. He stressed the importance of expanding generation and transmission capacities to meet the rising demand. The Minister noted that every census village in the country is now electrified and outlined the goal of improving service quality to enhance the ease of living for consumers.
He also shared that power supply in urban areas has improved from 22 to 23.4 hours, while in rural areas, it has significantly increased from 12.5 to 22.4 hours. Regarding the implementation of smart meters, the Minister highlighted that they offer benefits for both consumers and distribution companies by reducing billing errors, improving energy efficiency, providing greater convenience for users, and assisting DISCOMs in reducing losses, optimizing power purchase costs, and integrating renewable energy.
The Union Minister also shared that the Ministry of Power, in collaboration with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, has implemented various measures to ease the challenges faced by consumers in installing Rooftop Solar (RTS) systems under the PM Surya Ghar initiative. These measures include waiving the requirement for a Technical Feasibility Study for connections up to 10 kW and implementing deemed load enhancement for RTS installations up to 10 kW, among others. He urged State Governments to take proactive steps to promote Rooftop Solar Schemes to benefit consumers.
Shri Shripad Yesso Naik highlighted the significant impact of the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) in enhancing service quality and fostering consumer trust. He emphasized that the successful implementation of RDSS projects would strengthen the financial stability of DISCOMs while ensuring the delivery of reliable, high-quality power to consumers. He also stressed the importance of swiftly executing the sanctioned projects under the scheme to meet its objectives.
Members of the Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Power offered several valuable suggestions regarding various initiatives and schemes. They commended the scheme, particularly the role of smart meters in improving services and reducing losses. They also praised the contribution of the scheme in ensuring quality power supply to consumers through the execution of distribution infrastructure works. Furthermore, the members appreciated Union Minister Shri Manohar Lal for organizing the meeting. The Union Minister directed officials to take the necessary actions to incorporate the suggestions from the committee members and reiterated the importance of ensuring a stable, high-quality power supply for consumers.
ABOUT RDSS
The Government of India introduced the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) with a total allocation of Rs. 3,03,758 Cr., including an estimated Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) of Rs. 97,631 Cr. from the Central Government. The scheme is designed to enhance the quality and reliability of power supply to consumers by creating a financially sustainable and operationally efficient distribution sector. The primary goal is to reduce AT&C losses and address the ACS-ARR gap nationwide. The scheme has a five-year duration, from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26, and funds will be disbursed based on results and reforms. States can adopt tailored reform measures and infrastructure plans to address their specific needs. The scheme is open to all distribution utilities, including DISCOMs and State/UT Power Departments, excluding private sector DISCOMs.
The scheme is divided into two parts:
- Part A: Financial support for prepaid smart consumer metering, smart/communicable system metering, and upgrading distribution infrastructure.
- Part B: Training, capacity building, etc.
PROGRESS REVIEW
To date, 45 meetings of the Monitoring Committee (MC) have been held. Smart metering works for 19.79 crore smart consumer meters, system metering for 52.53 lakh distribution transformer (DT) meters, and 2.1 lakh feeder meters have been approved. Additionally, loss reduction projects worth Rs. 1.48 lakh crore have been sanctioned for 32 states/UTs.
So far, works worth Rs. 1.12 lakh crore have been awarded and are at various stages of implementation. The rollout of smart meters has gained momentum, with about 11.5 crore smart consumer meters, 45 lakh DT meters, and 1.7 lakh feeder meters already awarded and in the installation process. The scheme has shown positive results in Assam and Bihar, where the introduction of smart meters led to about 44% of consumers in Assam saving 50 units per month due to improved tracking of consumption and accurate billing. This has also helped reduce losses for DISCOMs in both states, benefiting consumers.
The strategy for rolling out smart prepaid meters includes starting with government establishments, followed by commercial and industrial consumers, and high-load consumers. Based on the positive results for these groups, the installation will expand to other consumer categories. Consumers transitioning to smart prepaid meters will be offered a rebate on their bills.
STATUS OF FEEDER SEGREGATION UNDER RDSS
| Feasible Feeders Nos. | Completed Nos. | Balance to be segregated Nos. | Completed (%) |
| 80,720 | 53,475 | 27,245 | 66 % |
ACHIEVEMENTS UNDER RDSS
- AT&C loss of distribution utilities at the national level has reduced from 22.32% in FY21 to 15.37% in FY23.
- ACS-ARR gap has also reduced from Rs. 0.69/kWh in FY21 to Rs. 0.45/kWh in FY23 which have substantially reduced further in FY24.
- Most of the utilities are now timely publishing their annual accounts.
- Most States are now timely paying the subsidy and Govt Department dues.
- Publishing of tariff and true up orders by utilities have been streamlined to a large extent.
- No new regulatory assets are being created for the distribution companies.