EPDCL aims to complete underground cabling project by August 2026
Tired of too many ads? go ad free now
The project involves laying underground cables for high-tension (HT) lines, including 33 kV and 11 kV lines, across the entire city. Despite facing delays in the past due to permission issues and government transitions, the second phase of the project is now underway, with work currently ongoing on the outskirts of the city.
EPDCL has already completed around 140 km of the 876 km line within three months, demonstrating significant progress.
Once the project is completed, residents in apartments will receive direct power supply through underground cables, eliminating the need for transformers at individual apartments. Public transformers on streets will, however, continue to be used.
The importance of underground cabling became evident after the devastating super cyclone Hudhud, which prompted the govt to undertake this initiative with the help of World Bank aid.
The first phase of the project, which involved laying around 260 km of underground cables on the beach road area, was successfully completed. The second phase, estimated to cost ₹973.44 crore, will cover the entire city and is expected to minimize damage to power infrastructure during cyclones and natural calamities.
EPDCL CMD Immadi Prudhvi Teja stated that the target is to complete the second phase by March 2026, but the presence of bitumen (BT) roads and cement roads in the city might pose challenges.
Tired of too many ads? go ad free now
He added that wherever kaccha roads are present, the work will be completed quickly, but digging BT and cement roads will require permissions from concerned authorities, making the process more complex. By August 2026, the city will receive power supply through underground cabling.
The CMD emphasized that the project's primary goal is to achieve disaster resilience, and with the second phase, EPDCL is confident of realizing this objective. The underground cabling of power lines will not only reduce damage during natural calamities but also provide a more reliable power supply to the city's over 18 lakh consumers.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
19 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Congress slams Centre as World Bank report highlights poverty, inequality in India
NEW DELHI: The Congress expressed concerns on Sunday over a recent World Bank report that said poverty and inequality remain concerningly high in India, and requested the Centre to take steps, including bringing in GST reforms and ending corporate favouritism. Citing the World Bank's poverty and equity brief for India in April 2025, Congress general secretary, communications, Jairam Ramesh said three months after its release, the Narendra Modi government's "drumbeaters and cheerleaders have begun spinning the World Bank's data to make the staggeringly out-of-touch claim that India is among the world's most equal societies". He said in a statement issued on April 27, the Congress had highlighted some of the key concerns that the World Bank had raised in its report. "These concerns continue to be relevant, and any attempt to engage with the report must grapple with them seriously," the Congress leader said. He said the World Bank report highlights that wage disparity is high in India, with the median earnings of the top 10 per cent being 13 times higher than the bottom 10 per cent in 2023-24. "Moreover, 'sampling and data limitations suggest that consumption inequality (as measured by government data) may be underestimated'. "More updated data (adoption of purchasing power parity conversion factor from 2021 as compared to that of 2017) would result in a higher rate of extreme poverty," Ramesh said in a statement, citing the report. He said the report also stated that changes in the questionnaire design, survey implementation and sampling in the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 2022-23 "present challenges for making comparisons over time". "As a lower middle-income country, the appropriate rate to measure poverty in India is that of USD 3.65/day. By this measure, the poverty rate for India in 2022 is significantly higher at 28.1 per cent," Ramesh said, citing the report. "The report is therefore rather clear: poverty remains concerningly high, and so does inequality," the former Union minister added. He said the good news that the Centre is so desperately trying to wrangle out of this report is partly attributable to the limited availability and uncertain quality of government data as well as to the selection of benchmarks to measure poverty. "No country that has a poverty rate of 28.1 per cent can make a justifiable claim to being one of the most equal societies in the world," the Congress leader said. He added that in the statement issued by his party in April, "we had also outlined several takeaways for Indian policymakers from the report. These also continue to remain relevant".
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
2 hours ago
- Business Standard
'Out-of-touch claim': Congress slams NDA govt on income equality data
The Congress on Sunday dismissed the central government's claim that India is among the world's most equal societies, calling it a "staggeringly out-of-touch" interpretation of World Bank data. The rebuttal came a day after a government release cited India's Gini Index score of 25.5—ranking it fourth globally in income equality. In a statement dated July 6, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government of data manipulation and misleading narratives. 'No country that has a poverty rate of 28.1 per cent can make a justifiable claim to being one of the most equal societies in the world,' the statement read. Referring to the World Bank's Poverty and Equity Brief released in April, the Congress listed several concerns. It highlighted that income inequality in India is likely underreported due to sampling and data limitations in government surveys. 'Wage disparity in India is high, with the top 10 per cent earning 13 times more than the bottom 10 per cent in 2023–24,' the party noted. It added that the adoption of a newer purchasing power parity (PPP) benchmark in 2021 likely inflates the sense of progress on poverty reduction. The party also flagged methodological changes in the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 2022–23, warning that comparisons with earlier data may not be reliable. It recalled that the previous 2017–18 survey was scrapped by the Centre after it showed declining rural consumption. Poverty rate far higher under new benchmark: Congress Using the benchmark of $3.65/day for lower-middle-income countries, the Congress cited the 2022 poverty rate as significantly higher at 28.1 per cent—contradicting the Centre's assertion that only 5.3 per cent of Indians remain poor under the revised $3/day standard. According to the Congress, this discrepancy underscores the lack of updated poverty lines and consistent data. 'The government has not updated the poverty line since the Rangarajan Committee Report of 2014,' the Congress said, demanding immediate action. Inequality is structural: Congress Congress said inequality is now 'firmly embedded' in India's economic growth trajectory under the Narendra Modi-led government. It urged reforms to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) to reduce its regressive impact, end 'tax terrorism', and address rising corporate concentration. 'There is a compelling need to support households directly and promote savings and consumption among the most vulnerable,' it said, criticising what it described as 'brazen corporate favouritism'. Govt cites flagship schemes to defend record Earlier, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting had claimed that India's Gini Index score reflects sustained economic growth and effective poverty-alleviation measures. According to a PIB release, India's poverty rate fell from 16.2 per cent in 2011–12 to 2.3 per cent in 2022–23 under the $2.15/day threshold. It credited schemes such as PM Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar, Difect Bank Transfer, Ayushman Bharat, Stand-Up India, PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, and PM Vishwakarma Yojana for expanding welfare, financial access, and entrepreneurship.
Indian Express
4 hours ago
- Indian Express
Top 10 most equal countries in the world and India's rank in it
India has emerged not only as the world's fourth-largest economy, but also as one of the 'most equal countries' globally, according to a new World Bank report that places the country just behind the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, and Belarus. The term 'most equal country' describes a nation where income and consumption are distributed more evenly among its population. The Gini Index, a report by the World Bank, has placed India in the fourth position with a score of 25.5, much lower than countries like China (35.7), the USA (41.8), and the United Kingdom (34.4). It is also more equal than every G7 and G20 country, many of which are considered advanced economies. Out of the 167 countries for which the World Bank has released data, India falls into the 'moderately low' inequality category and is just a fraction away from joining the 'low inequality' group, which includes countries like the Slovak Republic (24.1), Slovenia (24.3), and Belarus (24.4). This marks a remarkable achievement for a country of its size and diversity. It reflects India's strong economic progress, which aims at reducing inequality and poverty. A recent World Bank report — The Spring 2025 Poverty and Equity Brief — also highlighted that India has successfully lifted 171 million people out of extreme poverty. The share of people living on less than 2.15 US dollars a day, which was the global threshold for extreme poverty until June 2025, fell sharply from 16.2 percent in 2011–12 to just 2.3 percent in 2022–23. The Gini Index measures the extent to which the distribution of income or consumption among individuals or households within an economy deviates from a perfectly equal distribution. In simpler terms, it provides a clear picture of how evenly income is distributed within a country. The index ranges from 0 to 100 — a Gini Index of 0 represents perfect equality, while an index of 100 implies perfect inequality. The higher the Gini Index the more unequal the country. The data for the Index is based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are mostly from the Luxembourg Income Study database.
