Energetica india Magazine

CMD MSEDCL IAS LOKESH CHANDRA Q From the Commissioner of Nagpur Municipal Corporation to the CMD of CIDCO and now MSEDCL, you have held various administrative positions. How has your leadership phi- losophy been influenced by these diverse experiences? IAS Lokesh Chandra: My leadership philosophy has been shaped by diverse responsibilities across the Nagpur Munic- ipal Corporation (NMC), CIDCO, and now MSEDCL, each defined by distinct scales, complexities, and stakeholder eco - systems. At NMC, community-first governance strengthened my grounding in citizen empathy, active listening, and swift decision-making to deliver visible, on-ground service out - comes. CIDCO’s expansive mandate in urban planning and infrastructure sharpened my strategic thinking, institutional capacity-building, and commitment to transparent process - es, balancing long-term 5–10-year vision with near-term ex - ecution. Leading MSEDCL at a statewide scale has further evolved this philosophy into a transformation-led approach, harnessing technology, digitalisation, and deep collaboration with policymakers, private partners, and field teams to drive sustainable, scalable impact in the energy sector. Q In Maharashtra, MSEDCL provides services to more than 3 crore customers. What are your top priorities to improve supply quality and dependability? IAS Lokesh Chandra: Serving over 3 crore consumers across Maharashtra, my foremost priority is to deliver the best con - sumer service by ensuring reliable, high-quality power at the most affordable cost. To achieve this, we have aligned our strategy around deep network modernisation, through tar - geted feeder bifurcation, transformer capacity augmentation and systematic replacement of ageing assets. These efforts are reinforced by advanced automation technologies such as SCA - DA-ADMS, FPIs, auto-reclosers, and fault passage indicators, significantly reducing outage frequency and restoration time. Our digital transformation agenda, anchored by the large- scale rollout of smart meters, enables real-time outage detec - tion, accurate energy accounting, loss reduction, and greater consumer transparency and control. In parallel, renewable energy integration and feeder solarisation are strengthening daytime power availability for agriculture, easing stress on ru - ral networks and improving overall system resilience. Backed by customer-centric reforms, including faster griev - ance redressal, proactive outage communication, and field-lev - el digitisation, these initiatives are building consumer trust, supporting lower tariffs for agriculture and industry, and firm - ly positioning MSEDCL as a key enabler of Maharashtra’s economic growth. E ven amid rising input costs and heavy technology in - vestments, MSEDCL has decisively balanced financial discipline with affordability through a forward-looking Energy Transition and Resource Adequacy Plan, said IAS Lokesh Chandra, CMD, Maharashtra State Electricity Distri- bution Company Ltd. (MSEDCL), in an exclusive interview with Energetica India. 28 energetica INDIA- February_2026 INTERVIEW