SPEECH BY HER EXCELLENCY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA, SHRIMATI PRATIBHA DEVISINGH PATIL, AT THE PRESENTATION OF NATIONAL AWARDS FOR MERITORIOUS PERFORMANCE IN POWER SECTOR FOR THE YEAR 2007-08

New Delhi, 17th February, 2009

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a pleasure to be present here and to give away the awards for meritorious performance in the Power Sector for the year 2007-08. I am informed that the Ministry of Power instituted the Comprehensive Award Scheme to inculcate a spirit of competition among the various constituents for improving the performance of the power sector.

The Award Scheme rewards a wide spectrum of activity in the power sector ranging from the early completion of power projects to the performance of thermal, hydro and nuclear power generating stations, as well as transmission and distribution systems. I am happy to note that from the year 2007-08 onwards, awards for Rural Distribution Franchisees, who constitute an increasingly important link in the delivery of power to rural consumers, have also been included. The conferring of the awards for commendable performance to various entities will inspire others in the power sector to continually improve their performance.

Power is the basic input for economic development and for improving the quality of life. The country expects that its power sector will provide uninterrupted and quality power supply at reasonable rates for all sectors of its economy and will make available the basic service of electricity to all its citizens. Optimal utilisation of energy resources by using efficient technologies for the generation, transmission and distribution of power, along with a commitment to meet the social objectives of inclusive coverage should be the vision that guides the power sector in its work.

Successive Five Year Plans have rightly emphasised the development of the power sector. The need for a multi-pronged strategy encompassing all the facets of the power sector cannot be emphasised enough. The Government of India and the state governments have, over the years, undertaken reforms in the power sector and have been working to improve performance by increasing the installed generating capacity as well as improving the energy generation, transmission and distribution systems. As a result, the installed capacity in the country has crossed 1,47,000 MW and the electricity generation has increased to about 705 billion units during 2007-08. Also, the Plant Load Factor of thermal power stations has steadily improved from 60 percent during 1994-95 to 78.6 percent during 2007-08. Our efforts in this direction must continue.

There has been improvement in the power sector, however, the growth in demand for electricity has overtaken the generation of electricity and hence, the shortage of power continues to exist. It is essential to fill this gap. In the 11th Five Year Plan a capacity addition target of 78,700 MW has been envisaged with a view to meet the present shortages and the growing demand in the country. I am informed that against this projection, projects aggregating to 12,000 MW have already been commissioned and projects totalling 68,000 MW are under different stages of execution. I am also told that the involvement of the private sector is growing. Against the less than 2,000 MW capacity added in the private sector in the 10th Plan, more than 20,000 MW capacity in the private sector is under execution in the 11th Plan. The Ministry of Power has also taken the initiative to set up nine Ultra Mega Power Projects of 4,000 MW each. The capacity addition of this magnitude will require augmentation of manufacturing capacity of power equipments, skilled manpower and adoption of modern project management practices. All these issues are receiving attention in the Ministry of Power and must be addressed in a co-ordinated manner, with a regular monitoring mechanism to identify delays and constraints. I would advise all project developers to take all possible steps for timely execution of the projects so as to meet our objective of 'Power to All' by the year 2012.

Simultaneously, efficiency of the existing plants must be increased. The Government of India had formulated schemes for the renovation and modernisation of existing Power Plants for this purpose. Action to improve the performance of existing units must be undertaken without delay as it is a task that is relatively less time consuming than setting up a new unit. We also need to improve the national power grid linkages to optimally utilise generation resources of the country. Schemes have been taken up to augment inter-regional transfer capacity from 18650 MW to over 38000 MW by the end of 2011-12. However, action for transfer of power from surplus to deficit regions should be stepped up.

There are a large number of instances of power loss in transmission and there are also cases of power theft. All these issues need to be addressed for a robust accountability system. A Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme has been undertaken for bringing down the aggregate technical and commercial losses of transmission and distribution utilities below 15 percent. Energy flow auditing would be a useful tool for identifying leak points in the transmission and distribution lines. We must also educate our people that energy is a resource that needs to be used judiciously and all citizens have a duty not to waste this precious resource. Various energy efficiency and energy conservation measures have been initiated, whether they are the Energy Conservation Building Code or the Bachat Lamp Yojana or energy efficient appliances. Widespread publicity should be given to these steps so that people are encouraged to adopt them.

A utility system cannot be said to have truly served its purpose unless it caters to an entire population. In this context, I would like to highlight rural electrification as a necessary objective. The Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikarn Yojana has been launched to provide access to electricity to all households in the countryside through a focus on establishing rural electricity infrastructure. Coverage of all villages with electricity will constitute a significant achievement in our march towards the overarching goal of inclusive growth. I am glad to know that women's Self Help Groups of Andhra Pradesh have come forward to do the work of distribution in rural areas. Self Help Groups need a lot of encouragement by state and Central governments and I am sure that they have the capacity to change and transform the basic structure of our economy and the rural economy in particular.

Research and Development efforts towards finding technologies that augment energy resources, make use of energy resources more efficiently and provide cleaner energy options, must be encouraged. As an example, clean coal technologies can go a long way in reducing carbon emissions and contribute to meeting the challenge of climate change. All new thermal plants must invariably use clean technologies, which are environment friendly. The proportion of renewable energies in the energy mix must also be enhanced. With the conclusion of the civil nuclear arrangement, the country now has the opportunity to have additional power generation capacity through nuclear energy, both from new plants and by improving the performance of existing facilities. Achieving energy security for the nation by using different fuels and forms of energy that are also environmentally sustainable is an important task.

Power Engineers, Technicians, and operating personnel must constantly make improvements in their performance. Training and skill upgradation of human resources in the power sector is very important and constant efforts must be made in this regard.

I conclude by congratulating all the organisations that have won the Awards. I do hope that all the organisations would raise the level of their performance, so that new benchmarks are established every year and the country makes rapid strides on the path of development.

Thank you.

Jai Hind.