Dr. R.P. Singh, BoG Chairman, IIT Bhubaneswar receives award for Lifetime Achievement in Indian Power Sector

Bhubaneswar:11/2/25:Dr. Rajendra Prasad Singh, Chairman, Board of Governors, IIT Bhubaneswar, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Independent Power Producers Association of India (IPPAI). This award recognizes his exemplary service and contribution to the Indian power sector which has left an indelible mark in this field and his visionary and transformative leadership.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad Singh (FNAE) is an internationally acclaimed technocrat, administrator, and author, known for his significant contributions to the Indian power sector. He served as the longest-serving Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of POWERGRID from 1996 to 2008, transforming it into a profitable Maharatna CPSE. He has held key positions on the boards of several private corporations like L&T and Bajaj Electricals and academic institutions, including IIT Bhubaneswar and IIT Kharagpur. Recognized globally for his expertise in grid management, he played a pivotal role in restoring power infrastructure after major disasters. His leadership was instrumental in executing critical projects like the Talcher-Kolar HVDC line, despite challenges from global financial institutions. He also championed cross-border power interconnections with Nepal and Bhutan, laying the foundation for regional energy cooperation. Recognized globally for his expertise in grid management, he has been a key figure in India’s power infrastructure reforms and disaster recovery efforts.

Currently, he is focusing on promoting the non-conventional energy sector and creating mini and microgrids to supply power to far-flung areas of the country, which is still an issue to be resolved. He is a strong advocate of ‘Sabka haath, Sabka saath, Sabka vikas’. “Unless the poorest of the poor of the society gets engaged in the development of the power sector, it will remain a herculean task to provide power, which is the basic need of the country and its people. There is a need to integrate and involve the citizens to work towards this objective for an inclusive and sustainable growth,” Dr. Singh remarked.

Dr Singh also mentioned that the development of Micro and Mini power grids and the promotion of unconventional energy sources will help in the decentralization of the energy sector, without affecting essential services. He is impressed by the research and innovation carried out by IIT Bhubaneswar towards achieving this objective.A rooftop photovoltaic (PV), wind, and Battery integrated Microgrid has been developed by Dr. Chandrasekhar Perumalla, Renewable Energy Systems lab, IIT Bhubaneswar. The system developed can serve a peak load of 10 KW, is useful for research and feeding power to the grid, and improves system reliability under grid failures. It operates seamlessly irrespective of the grid presence/availability and has the necessary protection features. The system operation is assessed with the custom-developed weather station that measures all-important weather parameters. The developed system can recover its cost within 6 years, beyond which it can yield energy up to another 14 years, with a total life span of around 20 years.