West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited

Project Summary
Sagar Island is the westernmost island of the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta that lies at the
mouth of the Hooghly River. It is located 100 km from Kolkata. Sagar Island falls under
the jurisdiction of South 24 Pargana and is totally cut off from the mainland by
Muriganga River. The total geographical area of the island is 286.03 sq. km. The
locational disadvantage coupled with erratic climate change especially during the
monsoon season turned out to be the major constraints in providing logistical support for
continuance of essential services at Sagar Island. Sagar Island till recent times doesnt
have any facility with respect to grid electricity. Absence of power debilitates the
economic growth of Sagar to a large extent. Sagar is deprived of some of the basic
amenities e.g. healthcare, education, communication, electricity etc. whose cumulative
effect triggers growth that diminishes poverty, generates employment, increases the per
capita income and improves capital formation of the economy in aggregative terms. The
importance of Sagar doesnt only pivots around the mythological sage Kapil Munis
Ashram and GangasagarMela where million pilgrims across the country swarm on the
eve of MakarSankranti but also to those teeming million who resides over there facing all
odds with humility that transcends generation after generation.

Till recent times Sagar has only a limited number of domestic consumers and
commercial utilities who are provided with electrical power from diesel generating (DG)
sets for five hours each day supplemented with solar photovoltaic power plants supplied
through WBREDA. Another step to contain the issue of Sagar Islands energy starvation
is through the implementation of Wind-Diesel Project consists of 10 wind generators of
50 kilowatts capacity each, two 180 kVA diesel generators and a controlling system but
even if the project is implemented in its entirety it can cater to the need of only a
handful of villages.

The total number of population in Sagar Island is about 2.26 lakh out of which only
2,178 people (around 220 households) have access to electricity and that too through
DG sets. These statistics indicate that only a minuscule number of residents of Sagar
Island have access to electric power. Number of commercial consumers is so abysmally
low that it cant be reckon with. At present number of commercial consumers are only
394. Taking into consideration the decadal growth from 2001 census the estimated
population of the island will increase from 226,974 to 319,374 by 2017-18. This implies
that there will be an ever increasing demand of power in the island. Only viable solution
to this problem is to connect Sagar Island to grid power. The requirement of power is
estimated at about 9.5 MW by 2017-2018.

In order to foster the spirit of inclusive growth at Sagar Island and to enhance the
quality of life through augmentation of commercial activities, industrial activities,
irrigation facilities, etc. West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited
(WBSEDCL) has been assigned the task of electrification of Sagar Island under the ICZM
Project.WBSEDCL has come into being after restructuring of erstwhile West Bengal State
Electricity Board in compliance of Electricity Act 2003. WBSEDCL is a major power utility
of the state. It has been projected that the total financial outlay of this project
component is `34.2450 crores which will be spread over in the successive 5 years.
According to the initial projection it can be stated that all the prospective consumers of
Sagar Island will start getting individual connection from the grid by 2012- 2013. This
will contribute immensely towards qualitative improvement of the standard of living of
the common citizenry at large.The present project has been conceived for electrification
of all the 42 mouzas of Sagar Island with 100% household electrification work.
The Sagar Islands electrification work has the following important components:
i) Drawl of 33kv line from the existing 33/11 kV Kakdwip substation at Kakdwip up
to Lot 8 river bank.
ii) Crossing over river Muriganga through river crossing towers to Kachuberia on
Sagar Island.
iii) Drawl of 33kv line from Kachuberia up to Rudranagar substation.
iv) The aforementioned works has already been completed. The construction of river
crossing tower and stringing was undertaken by West Bengal State Electricity
Transmission Company Ltd. (WBSETCL), whereas the construction of Rudranagar
substation and drawl of 33 kV line from Kakdwip to Lot 8 and from Kachuberia to
Rudranagar substation has been undertaken by WBSEDCL.
v) The construction of substation has been completed as per the planned schedule of
work. The Rudranagar substation has been made operationalized for catering to
the energy requirements of the people of Sagar. The present project under ICZM
Project covers drawl of 11 kV line from Rudranagar substation, drawl of LT line
and the installation of distribution transformers at various location of Sagar
Island to supply grid power 24X7 to all the potential consumers.
The Sagar electrification is going on in full swing with the sole objective of making the
people of Sagar feel that they are not the estranged from their counterparts at the
mainland when it comes in providing the basic infrastructural facilities to shore up the
human development index. The above work was entrusted to the turnkey contractor
named M/s starling & Wilson Ltd with the work involvement: Drawl of HT line: 42 km
trunk and 448 Km spur line, drawl of LT line: 3 phase 443 km, total number DTRs to be
installed is 621 and 43000 household will have electrical connections.

Environmental and Social impact:

Implementation of this project is expected to bring enormous improvement in the
environmental aspect of Sagar Island. The grid power has been made available to Sagar
Island from October 2011 and consequently the DG operation has been phased out.
Hence the CO2, CH4, SO2, NOX and other harmful exhaust gas emissions due to the
operation of DG sets which are polluting the environment has been contained to a
certain extent. This scheme has been proved useful not only for controlling greenhouse
gas emission but also will provide a fresh impetus on the expansion of tertiary sectors
apart from providing a fillip to the growth of the education system.

The other social benefits are as follows:

Increase in river lift irrigation by using electric pump operated by grid power will
contribute better cultivation.
The continuous supply grid power will be used for preservation of fruits,
vegetables, fish etc. resulting minimization of losses.
Establishment of ice factory.
Setting up of fruit processing units.
Development of small scale units, commercial establishment, industries.
Expansion of health care facilities.
Improvement in education facilities.
Rural employment generation as a cumulative effect after commissioning of this
project.
Better facilities can be provided to the sage Kapil Munis Ashram and Ganga
Sagar Mela so that tourists can stay there not only for spiritual satiety but also for
recreation which in a way trigger the process of generating newer avenues of
employment.

Operation and Maintenance (O&M) Planning

At present only a limited number of consumers get power hence the plausibility service
interruption is negligible until and unless some extraneous factors come into play.
However WBSEDCL has been geared up to execute any kind of tasks in Sagar pertaining
to both preventive and corrective maintenance as per its established norms.
Preventive maintenance includes:
 Periodical trimming of tree branches near the lines.
Maintenance of HT lines, distribution transformers, load balancing and other
associated activities.
Besides this, restoration of supply in case different system outages shall be taken care of
by WBSEDCL as a part of maintenance work.
With an increase in number of route length of electric lines and consumers, number of
officials would be increased for Rudranagar Group Electric supply office on pro rata basis.
After implementation of the project, majority of the works under the scheme shall be
outsourced either to the Self Help groups or to other agencies that have the requisite
expertise in the aforementioned arena. Maintenance cost of the asset has been
estimated as approximately INR 0.8 million per annum, which translates to almost
0.23% of Project cost.

WBSEDCL has started contemplating the idea as part of its corporate social responsibility
program to utilize the services of the economically weaker sections of the society in
Sagar Island. The objective of engaging the marginal populace through SHGs is to
supplement their income, encouraging skill formation at the grassroots level, particularly
among the womenfolk, exploring the opportunities of self-employment at rural area and
encouraging the participation of rural people in the management of rural infrastructure
by way of infusing a sense of ownership among them.

WBSEDCL intends to employ the services of the SHGs for streamlining the processes i.e.
a) Mobilization of consumers
b) Meter Reading
c) Delivery of Energy Bills to the consumers

Before engaging the SHGs, the members will be trained on the basic aspects of
consumer mobilization and meter reading by WBSEDCL. The members will also be
trained on the process of filling up of different forms required for consumer connection
etc. These members will hence assist the local population to fill up the required requisite
formats and to place their applications for new connections to WBSEDCL in a meticulous
manner without any hassles. All the expenses pertaining to the activities to be
undertaken by SHGs would be borne by WBSEDCL through its Public Participation Cell.

Subsequently, considering the provisions provided in Rural Electrification Corporation

Ltd. for Rajeev Gandhi GraminViduytikaranYojna (RGGVY), it can be further decided to
extend the scope of work depending on the performances of the SHGs at the second
phase by incorporating:
a) Collection of Revenue
b) Minor maintenance work.
WBSEDCL realizes the importance for skill development of the members of the SHGs so
that the entire stream of activities can be perpetrated in sync with the overall process
panorama. WBSEDCL intends to solicit the assistance of a technical institute to impart
training to build capacities of the SHGs engaged with WBSEDCLs O&M tasks.

Disaster Management:

Sagar Island is cyclone prone
equipment adequate protection
implementation phase. The span
pole are designed at 60 M and 45
cyclone.
area. So, while erecting the PCC poles and other
has been taken in the design as well as in the
of LHT (Line High Tide) pole and LLT (Line Low Tide)
M respectively to withstand the effect of wind load and

The Operation and Maintenance (O&M) team exclusively dedicated for Sagar Island will
combat disastrous situation as and when necessary, to maintain uninterrupted supply of
power. Since it is not possible to provide any back up power to Sagar Island, the sole
responsibility lies with the O&M team to manage the situation. The SHGs will also be
utilized by the O&M team of WBSEDCL as and when such situation arises.

Projected Electricity requirement unto 2018:

On the basis of the 2001 census report, 10% population growth in each year has been
assumed for the future projection. In addition 10 persons per family have been
assumed. Present average domestic load is 140 kW per consumer and average
commercial load is 620 kW per consumer. The electrification work will proceed in phases
and initial trend shows that within the stipulated time frame the project can be declared
as completed.

Projected Population, Consumer, Consumer Growth (BPL) at Sagar Island

Projected Growth of Commercial, Industrial, Agricultural and other Consumers