PNS|Vijayawada
Special Chief Secretary (Energy) has said that with an objective to make Andhra Pradesh power sector a role model in the country, the State government is taking steps to strengthen the power distribution system, reduce losses, enhance operational efficiency, and ensure the financial viability of the distribution sector by implementing Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) that would enable DISCOMs to provide world-class services to the electricity consumers of the State.
The special CS said that the State government would invest around Rs 11,000 Crore with the support of the Government of India and may get around 60 percent of the total investment as a grant from the union government. The Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) will help the power utilities to get strengthened to a great extent and help in providing high-quality power to all categories of consumers.
Vijayanand said “Continuous monitoring and support of the Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and guidance of energy minister Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy for strengthening of the sector besides enormous consumer support and the best performance and dedication of entire employee community of power sector helped Andhra Pradesh power sector to become one of the best power sectors in the country. Now let us strive hard and continue our consistent efforts to make our sector No.1 in the country in the near future in the area of providing the highest quality of power supply to all categories of consumers particularly for the agriculture sector which is the backbone of the State economy,” he said.
He also said that as part of a series of major steps like nine hours of daytime free power supply including providing a huge subsidy of Rs 8,400 crore per annum for agriculture, the State government is implementing a direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme for agricultural connections. The DBT scheme aimed at giving a right to the farmers for the next 25 years to ask power utilities to supply highly qualitative power under the state government’s prestigious 9 hours day time free power scheme to the farm sector.