Power development in India commenced at the end of the nineteenth century with the commissioning of electricity supply in Darjeeling during 1897, followed by the commissioning of a hydropower station at Sivasamudram in Karnataka during 1902. In the pre-Independence era, the power supply was mainly in the private sector, that too restricted to the urban areas. With the formation of State Electricity Boards during Five-Year Plans, a significant step was taken in bringing about a systematic growth of power supply industry all over the country. A number of multi-purpose projects came into being, and with the setting up of thermal, hydro and nuclear power stations, power generation started increasing significantly.
The Ministry of Power is primarily responsible for the development of electrical energy in the country. The Ministry is concerned with perspective planning, policy formulation, processing of projects for investment decisions, monitoring of the implementation of power projects, training and manpower development and the administration and enactment of legislation with regard to thermal and hydropower generation, transmission and distribution. In all technical matters, the Ministry of Power is assisted by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA).
The construction and operation of generation and transmission projects in the Central Sector are entrusted to Central Sector Corporations, viz.,
the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), the North-Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), and the Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL). The Power Grid is responsible for all the existing and future transmission projects in the central sector and also for the formation of the National Power Grid. Two joint-venture power corporations, namely, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) (formerly known as NJPC) and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation (THDC) are responsible for the execution of the Nathpa Jhakri Power Project in Himachal Pradesh and projects of Tehri Hydro Power Complex in Uttarakhand respectively. Three statutory bodies, i.e., the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC), the Bhakra-Beas Management Board (BBMB) and Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), are also under the administrative control of the Ministry of Power. Programmes of rural electrification are provided financial assistance by the Rural Electrification Corporation (REC). The Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) provide term-finance to projects in the power sector. The autonomous bodies (societies), namely Central Power Research Institute (CPRI) and the National Power Training Institute (NTPI) are also under the administrative control of the Ministry of Power. A Power TradingCorporation has also been incorporated primarily to support the Mega Power Projects in private sector by acting as a single entity to enter into Power
Purchase Agreements (PPAs).