PGCIL still has some distance to go

It may have done well but its efforts to upgrade the country’s transmission sector haven’t been enough, yet.
That is the verdict of the parliamentary committee on public undertakings that submitted its report on Power Grid Corp (PGCIL), the state-run power transmission giant, in February.

Drawing upon the comptroller and auditor general’s (CAG’s) audit of the company’s performance in the 2007-2012 period, the panel praised PGCIL for successfully putting in place a national grid.

However, they highlighted that congestion still existed on the grid, especially for power flow to the southern region. This meant that despite its existence, the benefits of the national grid weren’t trickling down to consumers. PGCIL has a virtual monopoly over inter-state transmission systems in the country, accounting for nearly 97 per cent of all lines 120,000 circuit kilometers (CKM) of transmission lines (mostly ISTS) and a power trans¡formation capacity of 240,954 MVA.