question_answer 14)

Discuss the reforms which have been initiated recently to meet the energy crisis in India.

Answer:

The following reforms have been initiated by the government to meet the energy crises (i) Privatisation in Power Generation Power generation sector has been opened up for private sector and the government monopoly in the generation and distribution of electricity has been eliminated to gain competitive efficiency. (ii) Privatisation in Power Transmission and Distribution The Indian Government has approved private companies like Tata Power and Reliance Energy along with Power and Corporation of India for constructing transmission networks and look after distribution of power supply In certain slates. (iii) Regulatory Mechanism The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CEERC) along with State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs) has been established in 19 states under the Electricity Regulatory Commissions Act, 1998 to regulate tariff, promote efficiency and competition. (iv) Rationalisation of Tariff Tariff rates have been revised upwards to discourage wasteful consumption of power and bring down the losses of SEBs. (v) Encouraging FDI in Power Sector In order to meet the growing demand for electricity, India's commercial energy supply needs to grow at about 7%. In order to achieve this target, the Ministry of Power aimed at attracting US $ 250 billion of investment into the power sector. As domestic Investment in power sector is not sufficient FDI is being encouraged to supplement it. (vi) Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme (APDHP) APDRP was initiated in the year 2000-01 with the objective of improving financial viability, reducing transmission and distribution losses and promoting transparency through computerization. (vii) Enhancing Efficiency Government has been emphasising on improving the efficiency in capacity utilisation of the existing power generating plants so as to maximise production with the given resources. Better research and development efforts, exploration, technological innovation and use of renewable energy sources are being encouraged to ensure additional supply of electricity. (viii) Creating Awareness Government is trying to create awareness among public towards conservation of energy Various programmes like National Energy Efficiency Programme (NEEP) that aimed at conservation of petroleum products have been initiated. Use of non-conventional sources of energy like solar energy is being popularized.