Rs 71.56 cr for upgrading power network in Agra

Following the concerns expressed by government agencies and the Supreme Court on the poor state of the electrical supply network in Agra, the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) has been given an additional grant of Rs 71.56 crore for the upgrade of power distribution under the Accelerated Power Development Reform Project (APDRP).

The poor state is despite a standing directive for 24-hour electricity supply in Agra.

According to sources at Dakshinanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd (DVVNL), with this additional funding from the power ministry, the total project budget had now been raised from Rs 85 crore to Rs 156.56 crore.

This will include converting the city's power transmission lines into an aerial bunch conductor based-system to prevent power theft and transmission losses. These losses, currently, amounted to almost 80 per cent of the electricity supplied by the company to Agra.

Sources said the projects marked earlier under the APDRP were expected to be over by December-end. The additional projects could take a few more months for completion, sources said.

According to company sources, DVVNL should also do away with the construction of large electricity substations for 33/11 KV lines.

With this additional funding, it will build smaller sub-stations that would essentially be 33/11 KV transformers, meant for supplying power to a limited number of LT power transformers.

Besides substations, the company will install digital power meters on electricity poles outside the consumer premises to prevent power theft through meter tampering.