Planning commission to promote private investment in power distribution

The Planning Commission said it would set up an expert group headed by its member BK Chaturvedi to facilitate private investments in power distribution. The committee, which would include the chief secretaries of state government and the Union power secretary as well as representatives from two financial institutions, would be in place in the next two days.

"BK Chaturvedi, who looks after the power sector would chair a group which our infrastructure division will service," Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on the sidelines of a conference on public private partnerships in transmission projects that was organised by the Plan panel.

"We will have Chaturvedi, Secretary Power ... may be REC (Rural Electrification Corporation) representative and couple of financial organisations," he said, adding that it would also include chief and power secretaries from those states that have experimented with private operations.

Some of states that have privatised power distribution include West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Delhi and Gujarat.

After working out the various modalities on how PPP can be promoted in distribution segment in the country, the group would submit a report to the Central government. However, no time frame has been set when the group would submit its report.