MANAGEMENT

Tata Power Delhi VIKALPA

The Journal for Decision Makers
CASE 40(1) 97–113

describes a real-life situation Distribution: Automation © 2015 Indian Institute of

Management, Ahmedabad
SAGE Publications
faced, a decision or action
taken by an individual manager
or by an organization at vs Manpower sagepub.in/home.nav
DOI: 10.1177/0256090915573611
http://vik.sagepub.com
the strategic, functional or
operational level
Monica Singhania and Ramkishan Kinker

‘This is the magic of automation,’ said Sanjay Banga, Head-Power System Control &
Automation. ‘We had to go through a coal mine to get this shining diamond, SCADA.1 Apart
from increased reliability and quality of power for our consumers, we have successfully unmanned
our 50 grid substations through automation reengineering and I can assure you, this was not an
easy task,’ he added.

A
nd meanwhile, the office boy entered with tea for visitors. It was January
20, 2012; the visitors constituted executives from different state electric util-
ities of India who had come to visit Tata Power Delhi Distribution’s (TPDD)
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) control centre under a training
programme at the TPDD training centre to learn about the best practices adopted
by TPDD over its decade long existence. The SCADA control centre was located at
the CENNET (Centre of Network) Building, Pitampura, which was the centralized
location to control TPDD’s operations of the electricity distribution of North and
North-West areas in New Delhi, the capital of India. The entry to the control centre
was prohibited. A special state-of-the-art visitor’s gallery was an important part of
the SCADA control room, which was like a balcony in a theatre. As visitors entered
into the gallery on the top floor of the CENNET Building, their excitement took over
when they saw a big wall-size screen at the front showing a graphical representa-
tion of the complex electricity network and officers managing the electricity of Delhi
KEY WORDS
with mouse clicks sitting in the SCADA control room. Everyone was surprised and
Public-Private Partnership said that it was interesting to see how the officers in the control room restored the
electricity of areas miles away from there within seconds. This not only saved the
Power Distribution
physical movement time of breakdown attending crew to identify and rectify the
Technological Innovation fault in the complex network but also won consumer satisfaction in terms of much
Business Process more reliable electricity.
Transformation
‘Where is the unmanned grid staff now? And how was it initiated?,’ an eager visitor
Change Management asked Banga. Banga picked up the tea cup while looking out of the glass window
Technological Innovation and replied, ‘They have been redeployed to other manpower deficit divisions after
providing training as per need.’ While answering this query, Banga remembered
Talent Management
those days when the substation automation was about to be proposed and executed
years ago.

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 97

THE COMPANY By early 2004, the State of Affairs of the Electricity
Board in the North and North-West Delhi started
The Tata Power Delhi Distribution (TPDD) trans- turning around. TPDD revamped the entire network
formed a loss-making government entity into an effi- through its run–repair–replace policy, reengineered the
cient and profitable business enterprise (Vemuri, 2012) entire revenue cycle management process, upgraded
that has become a hallmark for public–private partner- the information technology (IT) and automation infra-
ship2 (PPP) in India not only in the power sector but structure, and established a performance management
also in other sectors. This was achieved by winning the system to make the employees accountable. It engaged
hearts and changing the mindsets, and through tech- with its employees through various programmes for
nology and commercial innovation. mentoring, motivation, and training, and also estab-
lished a structured reward and recognition system.
TPDD (erstwhile North Delhi Power Limited (NDPL)) TPDD also established its Center for Power Efficiency
was a joint venture between Tata Power and the in Distribution8 to train its employees and upgrade
Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi their capabilities making them adaptable to the IT and
with the majority stake being held by Tata Power. automation initiatives undertaken post takeover.
It served a population of about five million. The
company started its operations on July 1, 2002 post the Innovation and technology was the prime choice of
unbundling of erstwhile Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB) TPDD. Being one of the youngest companies in the Tata
(see Table A.1 for Comparative Performance of DVB group, TPDD has been achieving continuous success
and TPDD). Post unbundling, the electricity genera- since it began the journey in spite of tough hurdles faced
tion and transmission were the responsibility of the after starting its operations in New Delhi. Technical
Delhi Government, while its distribution was privat- and management expertise support had continuously
ized. TPDD operated with a registered consumer base flown from its parent company, Tata Power, pioneer
of around 1.2 million households (2,35,000 customers in the power sector in India. Resistance from residents
for every square kilometre) and a peak load of around of New Delhi in 2002 towards the privatization of
1,350 megawatt (MW), and the company’s operations the electricity distribution was a barrier for the Delhi
spanned across an area of 510 sq. km. (length of the Government as consumers were not ready to pay for
network was 9,952 km). electricity, considered as necessity and perceived to be
borne by the government. Electricity theft, elongated
TPDD’s utility business was governed by the provi- outages, and poor reliability of power were a few impor-
sions of distribution and retail supply license issued by tant factors which led to the privatization of the power
the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC)3 distribution in Delhi into three distribution companies
for the distribution and supply of electricity in the – TPDD, BRPL,9 and BYPL.10 BRPL and BYPL were the
North and North-West Delhi for a period of 25 years. companies of Reliance, the renowned business group
DERC regulated the working of the entire power sector of India. Consumers were habitual of long blackouts.
of the state of Delhi, including the determination of The entry of a Tata group company in electricity busi-
tariff chargeable to end-consumers and establishing ness was to turn around the image of the power distri-
performance norms (mainly related to loss reduction, bution. It gave consumers the hope of reliable power.
reliability of supply, and consumer service delivery). The reform process in the Delhi power sector was the
The norms/targets were set by DERC4 after taking into first of its kind in India and Tata Power had an opportu-
account ground realities (prevailing norms) for other nity to gain initiative advantage. To achieve the vision
utilities across the country together with the expectation of reliable power supply to consumers through reengi-
of stakeholders (regulatory authorities/employees/ neering and change management, TPDD began its
Tata management leadership team/civil society/ journey, considering that external forces were the only
consumers/other utilities) which were captured challenge. However, it soon realized that meeting the
through open public hearing. TPDD had consistently expectation of employees was extremely difficult to
over-achieved its targets and over a short span of nine manage as well.
years brought down the Aggregate Technical and
Commercial (AT&C) loss5 level from 53 per cent6 to The power sector in India had still miles to go and Tata
approximately 13 per cent, beating the world average Power, a pioneer and a leading power sector company,
of 15 per cent, along with major improvements in the took it as a challenge to improve the lifestyle of residents
reliability of network and consumer7 services. of New Delhi through quality electricity. Technical and

98 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

managerial support from Tata Power proved to be a on their own. But there is huge competition among the
harness for TPDD during its initial phase of operations. vendors who supply the power distribution equip-
ment or technology to the utility as the vendors have
Due to continuous improvement in performance for realized the future of the power sector. The end-con-
almost one decade, TPDD had become a point of attrac- sumers of electricity do not have multiple choices to
tion for other utilities and regulators as well. On the switch to another electricity supplier, and even after
power supply front too, TPDD areas had shown remark- the enactment of the Electricity Act 2003, in open
able improvement. Power outages (Vemuri, 2012) in the access, consumers have to pay wheeling charges to
region it lighted up were down from a regular five hours switch the electricity supplier. Moreover, the electricity
a day to near zero and revenues were up by 60 per cent. tariffs are decided by the government, and the existing
Just as significantly, the number of enterprises in the scenario of monopoly of power distribution companies
TPDD distribution area had grown six times, thanks does not offer any choice for consumers to purchase
to the reliable power supply. The company embarked power at a competitive price from other power distri-
upon an ambitious plan to implement high-tech auto- bution utilities. The power distribution licenses are
mated systems for its entire distribution network. allocated to distribute power in different geographical
Systems such as SCADA and geographical information areas, and there is no practical competition. But due
system (GIS) were the cornerstone of the company’s to open access and to gain government support, the
distribution automation project. power distribution utilities are silently competing to
sustain in the future.
Organizational Strategy
The strategy planning process was spearheaded by Organizational Environment
the Managing Director (MD) along with the Senior TPDD had been in the forefront as far as adoption
Leadership Team (SLT) that set the direction for the organ- of latest technology in the power utility sector was
isation. TPDD adopted best practices such as PESTLE,11 concerned. Together with the culture of consumer
Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat (SWOT) service excellence, continuous learning, performance
analysis, Scenario analysis, and Comparative analysis. orientation, innovation, and empowerment, it was
Over the years, TPDD had won several accolades12 for its able to set benchmarks of the accelerated reduction
pioneering efforts in power distribution reforms. of AT&C losses (~75%) and enhance consumer satis-
faction. TPDD leadership evolved an inspiring vision
Competitive Scenario and mission since inception, which was revisited peri-
odically. The workforce of TPDD was an amalgama-
The power sector in India is government regulated and tion of employees from erstwhile DVB (under Delhi
the power distribution is licensed in the allocated area. Government) and new employees recruited after take-
Due to the complexity of the power system and the over. As of year 2013, there were 3,981 employees.
requirement of long learning duration, high technology TPDD was an equal opportunity employer and encour-
costs and large human resource are the barriers to entry. aged diversity in experience, skills, and background.
And, due to public resistance towards the privatization
of the power distribution, it is difficult to enter into the TPDD had its own Government of India accred-
power distribution business. But, with government ited training centre – Centre for Power Efficiency in
support and favour of industries to get quality power, Distribution (CENPEID) – for in-house training as
and the increasing demand for electrical vehicles and well as training of the personnel of other distribution
appliances, there is a potential to attract big players in utilities. Over the years, CENPEID became the ‘mecca’
the emerging power distribution business. of TPDD because of rigorous training provided to
unskilled and non-qualified workforce after takeover
There are suppliers of power and power equipment from DVB in spite of resistance from these employees
in this business. Power is scarce; there is already a for training due to lack of work culture. TPDD had
huge gap in the supply and demand of power. The many firsts to its credit for innovative and successful
increasing cost of fuel for power-generating plants adaptation of advanced technologies to upgrade from
is leading to increased power cost to end consumers. a conventional power system to a modern smart power
Since the power sector in India is government regu- system as defined by Electric Power Research Institute
lated, power plants cannot increase the cost of power (see Exhibits 1A and 1B).

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 99

Exhibit 1A: Conventional Power System

Exhibit 1B: Advanced Smart Power System

Source: www.smartgridnews.com

These included SCADA and GIS applications, auto- system (OMS), Secondary Data Centre, and many more.
matic metre reading (AMR), global system for mobile The relative size and growth of competitive utilities
(GSM) switching, geographical information systems in Delhi are given in Exhibit 2. Since the distribution
(GIS) and SAP-integrated asset management, CAP on companies in Delhi are allocated licenses to operate in
TAP project, distribution management system (DMS)/ different geographical areas, there is no direct competi-
distribution automation (DA), outage management tion for capturing the market. But to build up an image

100 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

Exhibit 2: Size and Growth of Competitive Utilities in New Delhi

Discom Shareholding Management Distribution Area Consumers

AT&C Loss % (Target vs. Actual) Reduction
(Delhi Govt- Control License for (Sq.KM) Nos. (Lacs)
49%) geo-area of Delhi in 9 Yrs
A’02 T’07 A’07 T’11 A’11
TPDDL Tata Power- Tata Power North and North- 510 11 53.1 31.1 23.7 17 13.2 39.9
51% West
BYPL East 690 10 57.2 39.9 39.1 22 20.6 36.6
Reliance Reliance
BRPL Energy- 51% Energy South and South- 160 17 48.1 31.1 29.9 17 17 31.1
West

Source: www.derc.gov.in

of a reputed successful company in the society and Commission of India (CCI) has started to investigate and
the government, all distribution companies in Delhi promote the open access scenario in Delhi.
strive to perform better than the others. It also helps in
extending the license period in future. In financial year 2007–2008, DERC, through multi-year
tariff regulations, brought about significant changes
Organizational Performance which impacted profitability. The baseline of AT&C
losses was changed whereby the loss reduction targets
TPDD had consistently over-achieved its regulatory for financial year 2008–2011 were fixed from the actual
targets since its inception and performed better than reduced loss levels reached at the end of financial
its competitors in Delhi. This, while restricting the year 2007, thus severely curtailing the further scope
tariff hikes as was anticipated on privatization, had of incentive from the over-achievement of loss reduc-
also helped shareholders to earn handsome returns. tion targets. Second, the capital base for the allowance
The provision of open access with the aim ‘to provide of return on equity (ROE) was changed. From financial
electricity to consumers in other license areas of Delhi’ year 2007–2008 onwards, ROE was allowed only on
as per Indian Electricity Act 2003, motivated TPDD to capitalized expenditure unlike earlier where the same
perform above expectations to attract consumers from was allowed on entire capex including capital works in
other license areas. Hindustan Times (a daily news- progress (CWIP), thereby denying ROE on CWIP from
paper) reported, financial year 2007–2008 (Exhibit 3).

Under the Indian Electricity Act 2003, consumers enjoy the

freedom to choose the power supplier among many and ‘Technology and automation will play a vital role to
shall pay wheeling charges for switching. But even after outperform in a fast competitive emerging market
nine years of the enactment of the Indian Electricity Act, and to serve its consumers above their expectations,’
the concept is yet to become a reality. The Competition stated P. Devanand, AGM-Power System Control.

Exhibit 3: Financial Ratios (Multiple Years)

On Takeover 2002–2003 2003–2004 2004–2005 2005–2006 2006–2007 2007–2008 2008–2009

AT&C loss levels (%) 53.1 50.1 44.9 33.8 26.5 23.7 18.3 15.4

Operating margin (%) – 5 5 8 11 13 8 13

PAT ($ Million) – 5.44 5.85 11.35 22.5 37.35 19.9 34.29

EPS ($) – 0.0058 0.0082 0.0178 0.0408 0.0674 0.036 0.0622

ROCE (%) – 3 4 8 12 13 11 13

ROE (%) 6 8 15 24 31 37 19

Note: Data after 2008–2009 is not available.

Source: www.tatapower-ddl.com, www. www.derc.gov.in

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 101

Exhibit 4: Set the National Benchmark

Source: www.tatapower-ddl.com; www.derc.gov.in

TPDD aspires to achieve single-digit losses by 2015 country. As far as the various stakeholders of setting
under its mission through innovative approaches for up SCADA were concerned, these included regulatory
the last mile reduction of commercial and technical authorities, employees, Tata management leadership
losses. TPDD achieved the highest delta loss reduction team, civil society, consumers, and other utilities.
among all utilities in India since its inception in July
2002 based on the comparative data released by the SCADA helped in understanding the importance of
Power Finance Corporation in 2009. Till 2011, AT&C technology in an organization and how it could help
loss reduction for TPDD was 75 per cent compared to companies to improve functioning. TPDD highlighted
64 per cent and 65 per cent of BRPL and BYPPL, respec- the PPP model and its increasing popularity as a success
tively. This resulted in the elimination of subsidy from strategy, thereby achieving the effective management
the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi of aspirations of multiple stakeholders. In addition, the
to the power distribution sector and also in TPDD importance of employee training programmes and the
being recognized at both national and international effective deployment of resources under a changing
forums (refer to Exhibit 4). environment was also emphasized adequately. Finally,
TPDD gave inputs on managing change effectively
leading to organizational transformation and high-
Role of SCADA in Overall Success of TPDD
lighted the concept of sustainability of processes and
SCADA revolutionized the way electricity was distrib- adoption of global best practices.
uted in Delhi and had streamlined the process of power
distribution. Positive outcomes due to SCADA were There was an improvement in the business model with
evident in the first few years of its functioning. TPDD the IT working as an enabler to serve the needs of a large
needed to sustain the momentum and improve its reve- Indian population. There was also a visible impact on
nues on an ongoing basis. The government needed more the overall effectiveness as well as efficiency levels of
focused efforts in order to replicate this model in other TPDD as a result of this initiative. The key success factors
states across the country. The success of TPDD could leading to the successful implementation of SCADA
also serve as a stepping stone for other PPPs across the included the successful deployment of technology, effec-

102 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

tive utilization of manpower, ease of use and customer petroleum fuel with a very high cost in India; hence,
interaction,13 and setting up of more centres. consumers found a cost-effective substitute for elec-
tricity. Due to reliable power, consumers were indi-
rectly benefitted by saving on petroleum fuel costs or
Business Process Transformation inverter-installation costs.
Business process redesign is a critical aspect of change
management which lies at the heart of organizational
Technological Innovation
transformation. Managing change is never easy and
TPDD sought to remove redundancy for consumers as After takeover, when officials observed a poor infra-
well as DERC by setting up SCADA. Use of technology structure, high AT&C losses, vulnerable network
as a strategic tool to revolutionize power distribution condition, and lack of skilled, trained, and qualified
in India has a number of social implications for society workforce, the feeling of failure was natural. TPDD
in addition to the achievement of the primary objective analysed the existing IT assets during its inception and
of increasing efficiency for TPDD. Prompt correction of to its amazement, found only two personal computers
power-related issues also creates the perception of an being used immediately after takeover. At the same
honest and efficient electricity distribution system which time, consumer base with high per capita consumption
morally discourages the unauthorized use of electricity. provided a ray of hope to improve the future revenue.
Commitment from the central and state governments
The PPP model with TPDD as a private partner enabled in terms of Accelerated Power Distribution Reform
the Delhi government to utilize world-class services of Programme (APDRP) supported TPDD to invest in
a highly intensive IT company. Apart from significant new technological development projects.
financial benefits of such an arrangement (lower cost of
distribution of electricity), power sector reforms initi- In order to win the confidence of consumers, TPDD
ated as a result of setting up of SCADA had the poten- initiated a number of customer-centric initiatives and
tial to significantly enhance the quality of life of a large extensively used IT for building a smart distribution
section of the Indian society. network. It led to its technology innovation along
with its business/strategic objectives. According to
SCADA functioned as a centralized automated facility the former Head of Group, Business Excellence and
for the distribution of power. It was based on the Corporate Quality, Uday Mishra, ‘95% to 99% of our
ideology of the strategic use of IT to facilitate the busi- investment in technology has been driven with a clear
ness process. By setting up SCADA, TPDD undertook a cut road-map to serve.’ The company laid down a sepa-
comprehensive business process restructuring exercise rate IT budget for each year. As told by Wadhwa to
so as to establish international benchmarks in service PowerLine in August 2009, the actual expenditure for
delivery to consumers, on one hand, and ensuring IT in 2008–2009 was $3.6 million.
the legitimate generation of revenue for the company,
on the other. This, in turn, enabled the social welfare According to the Principal Executive Officer, Akhil
expenditure programmes of the Tata group to function Pandey, ‘The risk factor in taking up all initiatives was
in an appropriate manner. It was based on an intelligent high and in taking up one initiative at a time, risk was
use of IT to facilitate the process. Table A.1 reflects the low. But time factor was more. We decided to work on
transformation of the electricity era from an unhealthy all the initiatives simultaneously.’
and ineffective DVB to an advanced and process-ori-
ented TPDD. Automation had significantly played
an important role to achieve the goals in terms of FLASHBACK
consumer satisfaction, power quality and safety, reduc-
tion in losses, and revenue generation. Automation and SCADA/Automation Implementation Phase
redeployment of the workforce in different operational Banga took a sip of tea and continued
and commercial sections led to effective and efficient
operations and accurate billing and collections. In the The Apex automation committee was formed in the
pre-takeover stage, during power outage, consumers Management team meeting held on February 5, 2004 for
switched to diesel generator (DG) sets which ran on logical and smooth conclusion of the above-mentioned

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 103

 automation projects. It was important that a responsi- and improved the reliability of the network but also
bility centre be defined for the processes to be rolled out helped in removing manpower from the grids which
as per the integrated automation plan. were automated. In this context, Banga, said, ‘earlier
we used to give $0.20 million per annum as overtime
This committee was steered by R. K. Narayan (advisor) to 500 employees across TPDD. Overtime to all grid
and was empowered to chart the future course of action people has now come down to zero.’
regarding the implementation of the plans, network
configuration, assigning of the right people as per the TPDD was planning to implement the SCADA system
structure, and all other enabling activities which were for controlling all grid stations from the TPDD Power
required for the successful implementation of the auto- System Control Centre (PSCC) for the efficient and
mation roadmap. Sanjay Banga was the co-coordinator trouble-free operation of this system. It was highly
of the project. essential to have well-trained and qualified executives
who would be responsible for the operation and main-
The committee discussed the various issues related tenance of the PSCC and associated communication
to resource management and restructuring of the system. Different groups were formed to meet the func-
operation process, and also a detailed update on the tional requirements of PSCC (Table A.2).
progress of automation projects and their impact on
other systems. The estimated cost of the project under
work head ‘Establishment of automation in TPDD elec- The Human Resources Challenge
trical distribution system’ worked out to $10 million The TPDD CEO and Executive Director, Praveer Sinha
including labour, transportation, and maintenance cost (Vemuri, 2012), said
of $0.16 million per annum.
A critical challenge was to align the entire inherited
In order to increase power reliability, TPDD felt the workforce from DVB with the Tata work culture and
need to increase its capability of observing the network. motivate them to address the problem of AT&C losses,
According to Chief Operating Officer, Ajai Nirula, ‘It the power cuts and so on. The reforms had to be strate-
is essential for the organization to have a visibility gized with sensitivity and executed with agility.
of its distribution network, regarding what fault has
happened and where the abnormality is.’ The company, ‘This is a people-based organization. If the staff is not
in 2004, started with the automation of the grid stations. happy, the organization cannot function effectively,’
Simultaneously, the company set up the communica- commented Anil Kumar Choudhury, Vice-President,
tion infrastructure, which connected all the district Human Resource Management and Administration.
offices, grid stations, SCADA, and GIS applications.
Redeployment of existing manpower (refer to
The SCADA system was procured from Siemens, Appendix B) posted at 50 grid substations was a major
Germany, after customization according to the core spec- challenge for the management of TPDD. Workforce in
ifications provided by the TPDD field staff. The TPDD grid substations had been working for the last 20–25
team worked with the Siemens team at the Siemens years and did not get transferred anywhere else during
factory, first in Mumbai and then in Europe. The imple- this period. Incidentally, due to prolonged service
mentation of the SCADA system was supplemented by rendered at grid substations, the workforce was not
an extensive training programme by Siemens, Delhi, to comfortable with the idea of working in any other
all the operators. When including the grids for remote department. Coupled with this was a mindset that they
control through the SCADA system, the strategy of needed to learn new things in new departments if they
including grids which were least complicated was got out of grid substations which had almost become
followed. According to Sanjay Banga, complication a second home for them. Grid substation officers
involved in including a grid for remote control was were royally paid which also included good over-
judged on the basis of ‘number of outgoing lines from time payments (approximately as high as one-third
the grid, the number of panels and where outage was of their salary). In such a backdrop, considering that
not a problem.’ A backup control system was set up to grid substation operators might have also taken loans
facilitate disaster14 recovery. As Banga said, ‘No one expecting overtime payments as a regular source of
in India is doing backup control.’ The SCADA system income till superannuation, resistance for unmanning
not only speeded up getting information from the grid was quite obvious.

104 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

On November 9, 2006, CEO Anil Sardana, having an promotions with salary hike, employee ward employ-
open-door policy for employees and known for excel- ment programme, best working environment in offices
lent interpersonal skills, along with the top manage- with clean and hygienic conditions, computer educa-
ment of the company, visited PUSA grid substation tion, personal loan policy (for marriages, etc.), housing
(Appendix B). This grid was strategically important scheme policy, AT&C reduction linked bonus and
from the load management point of view as it fed a cashless medical facilities, etc. were a few key HR
high revenue area and had stable operations. Sardana policies which took TPDD towards its vision. Initially,
already had a clear picture of unmanning grids as the only 8 of the 350 opted voluntarily for the open-
switching operations were undertaken from the remote door policy which immediately promoted them; this
control centre with SCADA. Sardana interacted with worked as a spark to a dry grass. After that majority of
the grid staff and intentionally said, ‘We are going to the grid staff chose to be redeployed at different func-
unman this grid in two days.’ He wanted to see the tions. This led to enthusiasm among technical and HR
reaction of grid staff working there. The statement teams for unmanning the grids and redeployment
worked as a grenade for the grid staff; the information of manpower into different departments where they
flowed immediately to union leaders, and within a few could efficiently work and improve the TPDD’s perfor-
minutes, the union members also reached the PUSA mance. At that point of time, the zones (operation and
grid. After a long discussion with the union leaders maintenance), metre-reading group, revenue-billing
and grid staff on that day, Sardana decided to create group, and power system control were the depart-
the best human resource (HR) policies for the grid staff; ments where manpower was required, and hence the
convincing them to unman the 50 grids one by one was training need was fulfilled according to the require-
the biggest challenge of the automation project. ment at the TPDD’s in-house training centre, Cenpeid,
where the training programmes used to be conducted
Initially, Sardana wanted to offer grid operators to regularly. Technical as well as management trainings
volunteer to get redeployed as the volunteers were were provided to them. Training themes included
given immediate promotions and salary hikes. Finally, operation and maintenance, metre reading, reduction
an agreement was reached with the unions. But some in AT&C losses, ethics, safety, change management,
grid staff members were rigid on not leaving the grid work–life balance, consumer dealing, etc. These train-
substations. While unmanning of a few grid substa- ings are still part of the induction training programme
tions was done successfully and peacefully with union for the new joinees.
cooperation, there were some grids where grid workers
lay in front of the main gate of the substation to stop Sanjay Banga recalled, ‘Now SCADA system will
the locking of grid after unmanning. Instances of grid be made operational and all 50 grid stations will be
workers jumping the boundaries to get an entry inside controlled from TPDD PSCC. Since Ranibagh located
the grid were also witnessed. With a lot of persuasion interim system is already in place, transition to SCADA
and an assurance of a growing career, these people were control centre is expected to be smooth.’ Requisite
motivated and trained at the TPDD in-house training training to PSC operation executives was imparted
centre. Higher education policy (diploma holders before the SCADA system became operational. Phase-
were counselled to pursue degree courses and under- wise manpower requirement at the PSCC in view of
graduates were motivated to do post-graduation), automation is shown in Exhibit 5.

Exhibit 5: Projected Manpower Requirements (3 shifts + 1 reliever = 4 shifts)

Phase Control Scenario Envisaged Operating Staff at Total Other Staff for Total Staff in Total Staff
Terminal Per Shift Directing/Coordinating Shift Duty (Operations) at
System Operations in PSC
Shift Duty
August 2005 2 terminals (8 Grids) 1 3 4 16
(Existing Phase) Remaining 42 grids operated by Total: 4 Total: 12 Total: 16
local staff
December 2006 Final 5 1 6 24
SCADA in service (50 Grids)
Total: 20 Total: 4 Total: 24
Source: Case writer’s notes.

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 105

TPDD undertook an ambitious programme of subtrans- good cross-departmental management skills, listed the
mission and distribution automation (complete setup details after discussion with concerned departments as
of the SCADA system) to be completed by December per Exhibit 6.
2006. The operation and maintenance functional opti-
mization aligned to automated system environment
through appropriate manpower redeployment proved VISION FOR FUTURE
to be the key to the successful implementation of auto-
mation efforts. In view of this, manpower require- Change Management
ment for operation and maintenance activities vis-à-vis The success of TPDD depended on an acceptance of
current strength and future re-organization of opera- change, as much by consumers as the employees of the
tions and maintenance functions was worked out.15 erstwhile DVB (about two-thirds of the current staff
of TPDD were former DVB personnel (Vemuri, 2012)).
Release of manpower from automated grid substations Effective change management, which included reas-
and their redeployment was necessary to figure out the suring measures of continuity in terms of employment
financial and operational benefits after grid automation for former DVB employees, was critical in this process.
so as to look into the cost-benefit analysis. Sanjay Banga The fact that the then Chief Minister of Delhi, Sheila
clearly mandated the requirement of precise details Dikshit, personally intervened time and again against
to conclusively establish results in terms of financial, power theft was reassuring to the Tata group about the
manpower, and operational benefits from the automa- commitment of the Government to facilitate change.16
tion of 50 grids. The automation cost was approximately SCADA showcases successful adoption of strategies
$10 million (cost for funds raised from internal resources related to managing change effectively leading to organ-
may be taken at 9% per annum and tax rate 50%). As no izational transformation (Davidson, 1993). Managing
special team/agency was assigned the task of computing change is never easy and can never be successful if
the cost and benefits arising from automation, Kinker applied through rules unless these reflect the under-
was asked to coordinate the task among the concerned lying requirement for change. For achieving success,
departments. Kinker coordinated with the departments the employees within an organizational setup need to
of the area power system, power system control, and accept and embrace changes in the current business
automation, and initially came up with some intangible environment. The practice of business process redesign
benefits along with the improvement in system-relia- (Hammer & Champy, 1993) has existed for a fairly long
bility indices, after assuming the role assigned by Banga. time and is undertaken in most cases when any organi-
However, Banga was more concerned about relevant zation feels the need to revisit its primary determinants
cost versus benefits due to the automation of grid substa- of success, redesign the practices and procedures which
tions and consequent manpower redeployment due to alter the service it renders, and apply the strategic agents
automation reengineering to see that more accurate and of change to develop new success parameters.
most relevant cost-benefit could be figured out in mone-
tary terms over the remaining license period of 20 years. Anil Kumar Sardana, the former Managing Director,
He asked Kinker to determine the monetary benefits TPDD, recalls the period when DVB was on its last
due to manpower release from grid substations. In this legs. ‘The people, the processes and the premises were
regard, average salary per executive was estimated to be no better than the wreckage of a plane crash. We were
$600 per month. Kinker, an engineer in the automation asked to collect the debris and put it together,’ says
department and committed to his assigned tasks with Sardana (Neelmani, 2006).

Exhibit 6: Cost Details in Automation Department

Reduction in Manpower Savings due to redeployment of manpower (50 grids with 7 $2.52 million per annum
operators per grid and salary @ $600 per person per month)
Downtime Reduction Savings due to system efficiency $0.864 million per annum
Over drawl Saving due to no over drawl, as compared with other utilities $3.6 million per annum
Total $6.984 million per annum

Source: Case writer’s notes.

106 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

DVB, according to Sardana, was brimming with gross Sustainability of SCADA
malpractices and irregularities. Employees ensured that
records were not kept since these would make some As of mid-2012, other state electricity utilities were
of them vulnerable. Sardana also recalls how people increasingly coming forward to utilize SCADA
thought IT was an infringement of their freedom – the to improve electricity reliability. However, Banga
freedom to allow middlemen and brokers to provide maintained,
connections on behalf of the department and receive
We need to become more advanced to remain a front
kickbacks. DVB did not have a single good example
runner in power distribution. Existing SCADA in TPDD
of benchmarking against other agencies. Sardana said is an individual application to control operations of
there was not even an interest in benchmarking its 33KV or 66KV grid substations for the last eight years,
processes. ‘When we took over from DVB, I saw little but in the near future, TPDD needs to modify its SCADA
or no interest within the company to adopt change for integration of various applications like outage plan-
management so that we could reach a point where ning, limit calculations, and load forecasting.
benchmarking was possible,’ says Sardana. To make
matters worse, sections of DVB ran off just two desk- In future, process-centric application integration will
tops, which made processes largely manual. be required where control centre applications are
integrated through a service-oriented architecture
Sardana strongly feels that without IT, they could not (SOA). This may involve services, messaging between
have got a noticeable reduction in AT&C losses. Earlier, processes, and short-running workflows. Integration of
losses were labelled as T&D (transmission and distri- database-centric applications will enable the exchange
bution) losses, which normally describes the difference of information between databases. Web integration will
between the units supplied and what the company facilitate users and organizations to collaborate using
billed consumers for. But under the manual regime, web-based technologies over the Internet, intranet,
employees of DVB could bill consumers and reduce or a virtual private network. All these integrations
the difference between units supplied and billed for. are required for SCADA to sustain in future market.
In short, the losses could artificially be lowered. IT ’There is good emerging market for power distribution
changed that. It also helped create a proud workforce. utilities if they use technology with agility. Other state
‘It brought satisfaction among employees, and a satis- utilities also need to go for advance SCADA systems
fied person at work is a better person at home,’ says to sustain in competitive regulated electricity market,’
Sardana. This change of attitude among employees Banga added.
extended beyond the office and into their homes.
TPDD’s office computers were used to train their chil-
THE ROAD AHEAD: NEED TO ADOPT
dren after 7 PM every day and on holidays. ‘We want
SMART GRID
to catch them young. Six hundred have been trained so
far,’ says Sardana. To sustain within the power industry with limited
resources for power generation, transmission, and
distribution, it is mandatory for any leading utility to
Talent Management and Global Practices
adopt smart grid in the immediate future. SCADA is
TPDD wanted to ensure that the best talent was a pre-requisite for smart grid. Without SCADA, TPDD
attracted and retained for SCADA, which was a very could not even think of adopting smart grid.
prestigious project for them. To ensure this, TPDD
had considered designing suitable HR policies with Automation and unmanning of substations in TPDD has
incentives within its existing policies and procedures. changed the business process. Motivating other utilities
To adopt best global practices, TPDD focused on the to replicate this concept and adopt new technologies to
areas relating to financial risk profiling to sustain in the change consumer’s perspective and enhance employ-
loss-making business and computerization to achieve ee’s working efficiency is a challenge now. Government
customer satisfaction. TPDD wanted to continue initia- regulations towards climate change are diverting many
tives to adopt best global practices to deliver services to commodity market to depend on electricity (electricity
consumers and at the same time perform the role of a charged vehicles will be preferred) leading to increased
power distribution company of the Tata group. demand for power. In view of the existing power

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 107

scenario in India, many organizations have already and transmission. This would prevent widespread
entered into power generation as non-core business blackouts by prioritizing the distribution as per pre-set
realizing the future prospects. The distribution sector is instructions. Many countries such as the US, European
much more complex, and TPDD has shown remarkable Union, Australia, and New Zealand have already taken
improvement and hence the Indian government is also a lead and are in an advanced stage of using the ‘smart
moving towards more privatization of power distribu- grid.’ SCADA has made the operations fast and safe,
tion utilities in the other states of India. Power distri- but to meet the future load growth with the existing
bution is dependent on new technologies now and power system infrastructure, it alone may not be
hence the technology developers have a bright business enough. TPDD has to move a step ahead and to deploy
opportunity ahead. the concept of smart grid which includes the automa-
tion of micro-level consumer metres.
Power system grid has its inherent weaknesses. It is a
unidirectional process from the point of generation to The Indian power industry is on the verge of a revolu-
the point of consumption. Power is distributed through tionary transformation as it is working to develop the
various stations and substations. Intense manual super- smart grid to meet the needs of an electronic society.
vision is required to control power system grid through Expectations of consumers and utility commission
SCADA system. With power not capable of being stored incentives/penalties are leading changes to the power
and consumers having practically no control over the industry where data are required quickly, on-demand,
grid system, consumers can at best, restrict its use. They and in an easy way. Consumers are seeking a higher
cannot participate in power production and distribu- reliability and greater choice and are willing to eval-
tion. The use of alternate concept called ‘Smart Grid’ uate and change their energy-consumption patterns.
may be useful in this regard. It allows two-way flows of To achieve this, the concept of smart grid is needed.
power and information. It allows real-time monitoring The smart grid is a prediction-based concept, but it is a
of power use but SCADA is a pre-requisite for imple- strong combination of the electrical grid with the infor-
menting smart grid. Communication system are digi- mation and communication technology which makes it
tized; no individual can take the system to ransom. more reliable and efficient. With the smart grid, higher
consumer satisfaction will be achieved along with
Banga emphasized,
greater power generation from the power grid, and
Power distribution industry will be like telecom industry higher power generation and distribution will result
in the coming days, with lots of competitions, individual in enhanced asset utilization to a large extent. TPDD
electricity connection on non-payment would be discon- has already completed SCADA, DMS, DA, and OMS.
nected from remote with ‘smart grid’ system. Consumers
These were broad milestones to develop the smart grid,
shall be communicated their real time consumption and
but the biggest challenge would be consumer participa-
real time cost of power through electricity smart meters.17
tion. And, TPDD has taken charge to emerge within the
Through the adoption of the smart grid, consumers power distribution sector as a shining star to gain long-
will participate and have a stake in power generation term consumer faith.

APPENDIX A

Table A.1: Comparative Performance: 2002 Then to 2012 Now

Factor DVB TPDD

Power outages Normally 5 hours a day Assured 24-hour power supply
Voltage fluctuations Rampant Extremely rare
Street lighting Less than half the street lights Introduced power-saving initiatives such as LED fixtures for streetlights. The Delhi
were functional government subsequently asked other power distribution companies to emulate
this pioneering initiative (Vemuri, 2012). All street lights are functional at all times.
Power drawn from grid 5,200 million units 7,500 million units (23% increase)

Table A.1 continued

108 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

Table A.1 continued

Pending applications for new 20,000 applications Highly significant as all new connections are installed in a fixed time frame
connections
Industrial units within North 3,000 18,000 (tremendous growth due to reliability of power supply)
Delhi
AT&C losses 53% 13%
Computers in use 2 Over 2,000
Metres Faulty metres Theft-proofing through tamper-resistant smart metres
Employee behaviour and Unprofessional and mostly Highly professionalized given the commitment conveyed by being a Tata group
attitude rude business enterprise
Performance benchmark Absence of any benchmark China light and Power, Baltimore Gas and Electricity and Mauritius Central
Electricity Board
Use of information and Virtually none Extensive use of information and computer technology. For instance setting up of
computer technology SCADA centre, use of enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications, a distribution
management system (DMS), an operations management system (OMS) and
software that enabled automated metre reading.
Distribution lines Low voltage distribution lines High voltage distribution lines
Aesthetics and safety in open Totally absent Insulated aerial bunched cables are installed which improves safety and reduced
wiring losses.
Grid stations Manually operated Remotely operated grid stations (56 new grid stations)
Customer service Harrowing experience Electronic metring, online account management, 24 hour call centre and
over 1,00,000 pending complaints resolved within one year have all brought
considerable delight to customers overall experience
Company performance A loss-making government A profit-making Tata group company in joint venture with the Delhi Government.
enterprise TPDD benefitted from Tata Business Excellence Model (TBEM), a quality framework
that helps companies strive for and achieve business improvement.
Employee learning and No structured mechanism in Setting up of separate training centre in 2005 (Centre for Power Efficiency in
training place Distribution) which today renders training not only to employees of TPDD but also
to other power companies
Backup plan Non-existent Setting up of the Rithala captive power plant as part of TPDD’s islanding system
to serve as a backup in the case of breakdown (essential in case of hospitals and
streetlights).
Cost of distributing electricity 122 paise per unit 2 paise per unit (100 paise makes 1 INR) primarily due to technology interventions
Industry recognition Not there Distinction of being recognized as the first success story of power reforms in India
Associated businesses None Setting up a wholly-owned subsidiary NDPL Infra, a venture that targets business
opportunities outside the licensed area of company’s power distribution activities.

Table A.2: Groups formed to Meet Functional Requirement of Power System Control Centre (PSCC)

Group Responsibilities Manpower Requirement

A. SCADA a. D
 atabase engineering and application development maintenance SMG will consist of Electrical/ Electronics
Maintenance b. D
 ay-to-day maintenance work and trouble shooting engineers with IT experience related of database
Group (SMG) c. M
 aintenance planning and updating annual maintenance contracts administration / maintenance and software
d. C
 apable of attending all system troubles like system hang, software application development.
bugs, and errors Total six executives are required considering control
room 24x7 operations. These executives will be in
shift duty till the system gets stabilized.

Table A.2 continued

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 109

Table A.1 continued

B. Control Room a. Day-to-day operation including control and monitoring of sub- NOG will be formed of Electrical Engineers with basic
Network transmission and distribution network knowledge of network and distribution system. In
Operation b. Coordinating with field staff to attend planned, unplanned, and consultation with the Automation Consultant and
Group (NOG) emergency outages PSC (Power system control) it was decided that 5
c. Issuing safety permits engineers would be operating SCADA system on a
d. Generation of Management Information Systems and other reports shift basis. In addition, there would be 1 Manager
level person in-charge of SCADA operations coming
in day shift. Considering 5 operation engineers per
shift for manning SCADA terminals, requirement of
minimum 24 new executives is projected for 24x7
operations (Exhibit 5). It is proposed to develop
Manager/Assistant Manager level executives from
this NOG as they would have acquired sufficient
experience in network operations /management and
dealing with Delhi Transco Ltd. (DTL) and Reliance
Energy Ltd (REL). Out of 24, 16 executives can be
selected from the existing work force available. Hence
additional requirement is 8 executives.
C. Communication a. O peration and maintenance of communication network which will CSG in charge with a team of four executives with
Support Group18 include terminal equipment, communication system for distribution electronics and communication background are
(CSG) automation system and trouble shooting in SCADA related to required for maintaining the system.
communication system
b. O peration and maintenance of physical media that is OPGW, OFC
and all dielectric Self-sustaining (ADSS) and radio link
c. T o provide all future communication requirement for grid station
and RMU and their linking with SCADA system
d. C oordination with the local area network (LAN) networking group
(IT dept). It is envisaged that LAN networking (except SCADA LAN)
will be taken care by IT dept separately.
e. T erminal equipments have been finalized and training for network
management system to be given to executives who will manage the
network configuration
D. Network Planning I. Network Planning To begin with, this group may be formed by
and Analysis enveloping the existing System engineering group,
– Short-term and long-term planning of 66/33/11 kV and 415 V network
Group19 (NPAG) network planning group available with Corporate
in view of addition of new grid stations, power transformers, new
Operations Services (COS) and two GIS associates
sources from DTL and new connections/ disconnections, etc.
– Preparation of yearly CAPEX (Capital Expenditure) plan for network
management i.e. network augmentation/improvement schemes, etc.
– P eriodic review of the network load growth pattern; Identification
of automation points for enhancing reliability; and Improvement of
power quality indices
–C  oordination with SCADA system to get network parameters for load
flow analysis
II. Commercial Interface
–A
 ll commercial connections of large industrial power (LIP) and
small industrial power (SIP) before being sanctioned by commercial
group shall be analysed by NPAG for their potential impact and
load planning on network. This process shall initially be operational
through e-mail approvals; however, low tension (LT) connection
below 15 KW will be sent to NPAG for network updating in GIS after
field deployment.
III. GIS Interface
–U
 pdating the GIS electrical network. Presently, the GIS group having
prepared the GIS map updates it regularly. However, in future,
as NPAG will be involved in the process for all new connections/
disconnection and other new schemes, this activity will better be
managed by NPAG to keep the electrical network updated in GIS.

110 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

APPENDIX B: CIRCULAR FOR GRID 3. 
Following benefits will be extended to only those
DEPLOYMENT (RELEVANT EXTRACTS) eligible Grid operation employees who exercise option
for redeployment:
The organizational self renewal exercise is a continuous
process to keep various systems & processes at the cutting a. One promotion will be given in the existing CoP.
edge of knowledge & practices. To keep pace with the However, for all employees in S.O. grade who exer-
technological advancements being made in power distri- cise option for redeployment as Sr. S.O. (Selection
bution, automation of 33/11 KV grids was being carried Scale) will become ` 8000–275–13500.
by NDPL for past some time. On completion of the prepa- b. Functional allowance as shown below will be
rations, the issue of redeployment of manpower engaged payable on redeployment.
in Grid Operations was considered and discussed with
i. Reimbursement of amount equivalent to 40 l. of
representatives of employees. While deliberations were
petrol subject to usage of own 2/4 wheeler for
being held in the matter, the following two prime objec-
official purpose.
tives were identified:
ii. Special Pay of ` 600.
iii. Telephone facility up to 400 calls.
1. To effectively utilize the available technical manpower
in the viable functions for gainful employment in the c. 
Upon redeployment and completion of 10
service of organization years grade service as Sr. S.O. (Selection Scale)
2. To provide opportunities to the redeployed manpower the concerned employee will become eligible
for career growth & advancements so that reasonable for placement as Sr. S.O (Higher Scale) in
aspirations could be addressed.Based on consulta- ` 11250–325–13200–350–15300–375–17550.
tions with the stakeholders, this Redeployment plan 4.  Career progression and transition:
has been finalized for redeployment based on option
for conversion of existing Grid operation employees  Redeployment of grid operation employees will be
working as SSA-II, SSA-I, SI & SO in Supervisory cate- carried in phased manner and it will be synchro-
gory, without disturbing their channel of promotion. nized with the technical aspects of the overall auto-
mation plan. Efforts shall be made to complete
The key features of this plan are enumerated below: redeployment of manpower by March 31, 2007.
In case some of the employees (who have opted
A. Redeployment areas: Based on requirement and for redeployment) remain in grid designated for
available skill set, services of these employees manned operation after March 31, 2007 they shall
will be utilized in emerging areas such as a. become eligible for benefits as applicable to the ones
Energy Accounting and Energy Audit; b. Safety redeployed.
deployment, enhancement and Audit; c. O&M  In case of employees opting for redeployment out of
functions; and d. Commercial functions grid, eligibility for promotion to next level shall be
retained as applicable now. While considering these
B. 
Training & Development needs: Suitable
employees for promotion to next level after comple-
training modules will be designed and
tion of eligibility period, vacancy constraints will
imparted for smooth transition and per-
not be applicable.
formance oriented contribution by these
 22 of the employees currently working as Shift
employees.
Incharge grade who have not been promoted (because
C. Career progression opportunities & associated of vacancy constraints; in spite of completing eligi-
benefits: 1. Since some of the grids are likely bility periods on different dates) since formation
to remain manually operated for some more of NDPL, will be considered for promotion to S.O.
time, ‘Last-In-First-Out’ (LIFO) principle will grade if they opt for redeployment out of the grid
be adopted for redeployment. Accordingly, in under this scheme. A special relaxation of 2 years will
this phase, employees currently working as Sub be considered for such employees while considering
Station Attendant Gr. II, Sub Station Attendant them for promotion to next level after that. Similarly
Gr. I, Shift Incharge and Shift Officer will be one such employee working as SSA Gr. I will also
eligible to exercise their choice for redeploy- be given special relaxation of one year while being
ment. 2. The existing designations of the Grid considered for promotion to next level after rede-
Operation employees shall be retained after ployment. However, promotions shall be subject to
redeployment. Functional supervisory desig- performance & other relevant criteria as applicable.
nations as applicable will be given in the rede-
ployed areas. Source: Circular Ref: NDPL/HR/Grddated 05/01/2007

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 111

NOTES
1 Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA). 10 BSES Yamuna Power Ltd.
2 There are many models/schemes and modalities to 11 Political, Economic, Sociological, Technological, Legal,
implement PPP. Build–own–operate (BOO); build– and Environmental.
develop–operate (BDO); design–construct–manage– 12 First power distribution utility from India to win 2008
finance (DCMF); buy–build–operate (BBO); lease– Edison Award and again the same award in 2009 for Policy
develop–operate (LDO); wrap-around addition (WAA); Advocacy. Some of the other key recognitions include
build–own–operate–transfer (BOOT); build–rent–own– International Palladium Balanced Scorecard Hall of Fame
transfer (BROT); build–lease–operate–transfer (BLOT); Award 2008, SAP Ace Award 2008; UPN, USA Metering
build–transfer–operate (BTO); and manage–service– Award; Asian Power Award 2011 (fifth consecutive year),
provide (MSP) (Source: Public–Private Partnership in Asia’s Best Employer Brand Award 2011, Falcon Media
Indian Infrastructure Development: Issues and Options. Group – Best Performing Utility (Urban), India Power
Accessed through http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/BS_ Award—Research and Technology and the Asian Power
VIEWContent.aspx?ID=1912). Most Inspirational CEO of the Year 2008 Award (source:
3 www.derc.com www.tatapower-ddl.com).
4 DERC, the state regulatory agency, determines electricity 13 Based on customer satisfaction index, inputs such as
tariffs, promotes competition, efficiency, and economy in the reliability of power, quality of power, availability of
power industry, setting standards and directing discoms power, restoration of supply during any fault, etc. were
regarding their work based on consumer-satisfaction incorporated. Direct customer inputs taken through
survey. monthly meetings with resident welfare association (RWA)
5 AT&C loss is the actual measure of the overall efficiency were also duly considered. Since SCADA significantly
of the distribution business as it measures both technical improved all these factors, the integration of the customer
and commercial losses. AT&C loss¼ (energy input vs. helpline with the SCADA centre plays an important role
energy realized) £ 100/energy input. Energy realized ¼ for correct and quick information regarding power outage
energy billed £ collection efficiency. Collection efficiency ¼ or interruptions.
amount realized £ 100/amount billed. 14 In view of the disaster management system, TPDD will
6 Without the participation and cooperation of all employees, have a backup centre located at Inder Puri. The plan is
the company could not have brought the AT&C losses to set up a backup power generation plant to supply key
down to the current 12% since most losses were due to facilities such as hospitals and public lighting. The backup
commercial rather than technical reasons. control centre manpower requirements shall be met by the
7 ‘We are a recognized part of TATA Group, Along with executives already working as SCADA executives.
the achievements and reduction in AT&C losses, we 15 Source: Interview with Sanjay Banga (HOD-PSC and
have more challenges and more accountability towards Automation) and P. Devanand (HOG-PSC).
our consumers’ – Anil Kumar Choudhary, Former 16 The Delhi Government extended financial support in
Vice President, Human Resource Management and addition to political support to TPDD, as it did to other
Administration (Source: Video released on New Year 2012 power distribution companies in the National Capital
‘TPDDL AAP TAK’). Region during the transition period.
8 Established in 2005, this centre helped create a skilled work- 17 Theft-proofing through tamper-resistant metres and high-
force for TPDD and other power distribution companies. voltage transmission lines played a key role in TPDD’s
9 BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd. success.

REFERENCES
Davidson, W.H. (1993). Beyond re-engineering: The three IT and a unique style of change management. Real CIO
phases of business transformation. IBM Systems Journal, World, June, 61–63.
32(1), 65–79. Vemuri, S. (2012). Simple Steps of a Complex Dance. Tata
Hammer, M., & Champy, J. (1993). Reengineering the corpora- Review, June, 53–66. Available from http://www.tata.
tion. New York, NY: Harper Collins. co.in/pdf/tata_review_june_12/simple_steps_cover_
Neelmani, R. (2006). How North Delhi Power Limited turned story.pdf
around an ailing government department by introducing

112 TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION: AUTOMATION VS MANPOWER

Monica Singhania is an Associate Professor in the Faculty Ramkishan Kinker is an MBA Executive Alumni Class of
of Management Studies (FMS), University of Delhi. She is a 2013, Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), University of
graduate from Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi. He is a graduate in Electrical Engineering from National
Delhi, and post-graduate from Delhi School of Economics, Institute of Technology, Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh. He
University of Delhi, and a Fellow Member (FCA) of the has worked with Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited for
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. She has the eight years and is presently associated with Qatar General
distinction of being placed in the merit list of the examina- Electricity and Water Corporation, Doha, State of Qatar. His
tions conducted by both the University and the Institute. She
area of expertise is Electrical Power System Reliabil‑ity.
has been awarded Ph.D. in the area of corporate finance and
taxation from the University of Delhi. She is the author of
e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
seven books on direct tax laws and several research papers
published in leading journals. She teaches management
accounting, management control systems, project manage-
ment, and corporate taxation to MBA students at the FMS.

e-mail: [email protected]

VIKALPA • VOLUME 40 • ISSUE 1 • JANUARY-MARCH 2015 113