A new GIS substation was recently inaugurated in Bihar. The 2×10 MVA substation was commissioned under the Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) of Government of India.
The substation was inaugurated in Purnia, Bihar, and was commissioned by state discom North Bihar Power Distribution Company Ltd (NBPDCL).
The inauguration ceremony is a part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations marking 75 years of India’s independence.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by officials from NBPDCL and Power Finance Corporation (PFC), a release by PFC said. (see photograph)
The newly-inaugurated substation was sanctioned in 2018 under IPDS scheme with sanctioned cost of Rs.8.99 crore. Besides, there was Government of India grant of Rs.5.40 crore. The GIS substation was declared complete on April 6, 2021, overcoming the challenges posed by the prevailing COVID situation, the release said.
Also read:IPDS Records Significant Progress Despite COVID Lockdown
The GIS substation will benefit approximately of 3.26 lakh people of Purnia and the surrounding areas. It will further reduce the land requirement and will lower the operational and maintenance cost and will also provide safe working environment for the attending personnel.
IPDS
The Union ministry of power notified the Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) on December 3, 2014, with Power Finance Corporation (PFC), as the scheme’s nodal agency. IPDS has the following broad objectives:
- Strengthening of sub-transmission and distribution networks in urban areas
- Metering of distribution transformers/feeders consumers in urban areas
- IT enablement of distribution sector and strengthening of distribution network under R-APDRP for XII and XIII Plan periods, by carrying forward the approved outlay for R-APDRP to IPDS.
- Schemes for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and IT-enablement of balance urban towns are also included under IPDS. The scope of IT enablement has been extended to all 4041 towns as per Census 2011
- Underground cabling to include additional demand of states and smart metering solution for states performing in accordance with norms set under Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY)
