Energetica india Magazine

Guinness World Records acceptance. The achievement rein - forces MSEDCL’s national leadership, ranked No. 1 in off-grid solar pump installations in India, with over 60 percent market share. Q How is MSEDCL making sure that farmers receive solar pumps along with sufficient support for long-term utility, operation, and maintenance? IAS Lokesh Chandra: MSEDCL guarantees farmers’ long-term success with off-grid solar pumps via stringent pre-dispatch quality inspections, a seamless online application portal, and mandatory five-year comprehensive maintenance contracts per vendor. Each vendor operates district-level service centres stocked with spares, while a robust three-tier grievance mech - anism resolves complaints within three days. Independent au - dits by CRISIL and EY validate performance and reliability across the pump lifecycle, fostering sustained utility and farm - er confidence. Q What are the obstacles to grid integration as Maharashtra shifts its agricultural power supply to solar, and how does MSEDCL intend to address them? IAS Lokesh Chandra: Maharashtra’s agricultural solar transi - tion, driven by MSKVY 2.0 feeder-level plants, faces challeng - es such as distribution and transmission bottlenecks, along with rural grid variability that constrains renewable absorp- tion. MSEDCL is addressing these through a holistic grid-moderni - sation strategy: • AI/ML-based forecasting, real-time system monitoring, and smart metering to enhance stability and control losses. • Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to manage inter - mittency and firm supply. • Targeted substation and feeder upgrades supported by digi - tal operations tracking. Coupled with close coordination with the Government of Ma - harashtra and the regulator for policy alignment, these mea - sures are enabling seamless decentralised solar integration, stronger grid reliability, and long-termfinancial sustainability. Q Power theft, outages, and customer complaints are prob- lems that distribution utilities in India deal with. How is MSEDCL improving accountability and enforcement to address problems like power theft? IAS Lokesh Chandra: MSEDCL combats power theft, outag - es, and complaints through integrated tech-enforcement-field reforms. Smart meters and digital platforms provide real-time loss visibility and anomaly detection, while AI analytics pin - point high-theft zones for targeted action. On-ground, we have aligned field officer KPIs to SOPs, bolstered vigilance teams, and accelerated protocols for disconnecting illegal taps, foster - ing accountability, transparency, and superior service across the board. Over 100 flying squads have been deployed on the field to curb the energy thefts. MSEDCL has its own custom - er care centre, which is working 24X7 with a feedback mech - anism in place to ensure improvement in response time and service quality. We have reorganised our teams on the field, re-aligning them with Billing & Revenue and maintenance ac - tivities separately to deliver the services to the consumers in a more effective way. Q In five years, howwould you describe your legacy at MSED - CL? What effect do you want to have on the energy sector in Maharashtra? IAS Lokesh Chandra: In five years, I envision my legacy as ca - talysing MSEDCL’s transformation from legacy constraints into a beacon of financial strength, technological innovation, and renewable leadership, scaling capacity from 37 GW to 82 GW with assured resource adequacy through 2034–35 under one of India’s most ambitious energy transition plans. Flag - ship initiatives such as MSKVY 2.0, the Guinness World Re - cord for solar pumps, and the rapid rooftop solar expansion will define this journey, sharply reducing costs while expand - ing access for millions. Powered by smart metering, AI-driven tools, RDSS reforms, cost-efficient procurement, agricultural demerger, and a po - tential listing, these efforts will deliver lower tariffs, fully dig - ital citizen services, and real-time centralised command cen - tres, positioning Maharashtra as a global benchmark for clean energy scale, daytime power for farmers, subsidy rationalisa - tion, industrial competitiveness, and sustainable growth. 30 energetica INDIA- February_2026 INTERVIEW