Part 18 (2/2)

These needs to be specially designed to match Indian coal with high ash. We should learn to use our abundant supplies of coal by suitably treating them rather than resorting to import of coal or fuel from outside. Even the USA has set itself a target of energy security with least dependence on foreign sources to supply.

Nuclear power, including that with fast breeder technology, is crucial in India's search for energy sources.

To further enhance the carrying capacity of the transmission lines, microproces...o...b..sed compensation systems are envisaged.

New substations where the land is scarce, a situation which 228.

is likely to increase with growing urbanization. Design and manufacturing capabilities for constructing gas insulated substations are required to be developed in the country.

New sources of electricity Our vision for the electric power sector will not be complete without a major emphasis on the new sources of energies which are clean and renewable. The principle forms of these are : bioma.s.s, wind, solar and small hydros. India's wind potential is estimated at 2000 MW. See in table 11.1 for other potentials.

TABLE 11.1.

Estimated Potential for Various Renewable Energy Technologies Sources/system approximate potential _____________________________________________________________.

Biogas plants (in millions) 12 Improved woodstoves (in millions) 120.

Biogas (MW) 17000

2.

Solar energy (MW/km ) 20 Wind energy (MW) 20000 Small hydro power (MW) 10000 Ocean energy (MW) 50000 ____________________________________________________________.

source: TERI Energy Data Directory and Year Book 199798 Renewable energy sources should be seen not merely in terms of units of power but as saviours for areas which might not have had access to power. If this location specific approach is used and such systems are chosen to provide people with ower, a tremendous economic and social role change will be brought about by these energy sources. The 229.

technology vision for such a service is therefore a right mix of these technologies along other conventional sources like batteries, diesel or kerosene engines.

In the much longer term, fuel cells, organic energy sources, hydrogen energy fission power and fusion power would play an important role and Indian researchers have immense opportunities to create new systems.

Energy efficiency In the short, medium and long term, efficiency in the use of energy will be a crucial part of the technological milieu of all sectors. For example, the waste heat from steel plants today is rejected at relatively high absolute temperature levels (sometimes ranging from o o 800 C to 1500 C ). if, say,20 per cent of this energy is recovered in the form of waste heat, this could be used to fuel a mediumsized power plant. In every walk of life, including our homes, there can be many examples of energy conservation. For example, if a milk vessel is taken from the refrigerator and kept outside at room temperature for some time before being put on the stove, the additional energy required for heating a cold vessel will be reduced. More important, many of the electric gadgets we see in our homes and factories are not designed for efficient use of power. Most of our fans, for example, consume about twice the electric power they need to run at a particular speed. Many incremental technological inductions in such systems will mean more power being available for others to consume. The agricultural sector is also an area where such energy conservation would need to be addressed immediately. Even if power is given free or at subsidized rates for agricultural operations, it is desirable to utilize minimum energy for the same task through the use of energyefficient electric pumps. In the long run the aim should be to avoid excessive subsides ecause the nation and the people have to realize that electric power is the lifeline of the country's economy.

Other issues There are a number of complex political and legal issues which are required to be solved to ensure the vision of quality power for all. Private sector partic.i.p.ation could also lead to compet.i.tion in serving the users. There are also possibilities of transborder flows of electricity as a regular business. Technologies are well within reach to make India a 230.

powerrich country which is able to provide quality power for all at affordable prices. But the nation and several stakeholders have to evolve the prioritiesin infrastructure technology and break the nexus of vested interests and inertia, often built up by the stakeholders themselves. We believe that the country can accomplish this vision for electric power when it wills itself into becoming a developed nation.

The waters Rivers have great mythic significance for us. However we have not treated our water resources with the care they deserve.The need for water for agriculture, industry and personal consumption is understood by all, especially when big cities and rural areas reel under water shortages in the summer. The pollution of our rivers and water bodies is also reflected in the health problems that occur in many parts of the country. Urgent attention is needed to overcome these problems in the coming years. Recycling of water and water conservation will be a critical component of our daily lives in the coming millennium.We would like to share with the readers another aspect of water: water as a transport medium.

Waterways are one of the most energyefficient forms of transport. Road transport services and railways occupy a prominent place in our transport system accounting for 53.3 per cent and 31.7 per cent respectively of the total GDP of the entire transport sector in 199293. Onthe other hand , water transport has a share of only 6.5 per cent. The GDP in the road transport sector has been growing at an annual rate of 8.8 per cent between 198081 and 199293 as compared to the growth rate of just 3 per cent in water transport.

There are several factors which explain the diminis.h.i.+ngimportance of waterways. The main disadvantage of waterways is that they can transport goods only on fixed and limited routes unlike the road and railway systems which have the capacity to provide services between a large number of points to suit the requirements of the users. Secondly ,there has beena rapid expansion of the railway and road networks during the past four decades, while waterways have remained almostneglected. Public sector investment in inland waterways transport (IWT) has been very small in comparison to the investment another modes of transport. It was only in the seventh plan that some attention was paid to the development of waterways and water transport. The use of IWT is confined only to certainareas like the Mandovi river in Goa, Ganga in the eastern regions, the ca.n.a.ls and backwaters of Kerala,Karnataka,Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.The spatial limitation 231.

of waterways cannot, however, beconsidered a major constraint in the development of water transport as 61 per cent of the extent of navigable waterways remains unutilized.

Attention ,therefore, needs to be focused on how best the current navigable water system of 14544km can be utilized to develop an efficient transport system. It is imperative to identify and remove the physical infrastructural constraints. Some of the major constraints are given below: .

Navigational hazards due to bank erosion, siltation and deterioration of channels .

Shallow water and narrow width of rivers .

Lack of adequate navigational aids .

Inadequacy of horizontal and vertical clearance, inadequacy of hydraulic structure (locks), and old vessels and .

Loss in the cost of advantage of IWT when the place of origin and destination is not located on the river bank.

An a.n.a.lysis of the current status of the two major waterways in the country, viz. the GangaBhagirathiHooghly (GBH) river system and the Brahmaputra river reveals that presently mostly bulky and nonperishable commodities are being transportedon these two river systems. There is, however , a great potentialfor increasing the volume of traffic on them. But this potential can be exploited only through development of an integrated network of rail, road and IWT. This would also require the establishment of efficient mechanical cargohandling facilitiesat various points of the multimodal transport network. Although some waterways in the country have been cla.s.sified as national waterways, there is a need to modernize these by making appropriate use of available technology, such as position location and communication systems, so that become'smart waterways'. Smart waterways should have sufficient navigable depth and width so that larger vessels with higher draft may be able to navigate them. The condition of the waterways should permit navigation throughout the year. They should have smooth bends and minimum siltation, with sufficient vertical clearance so that the vessel's movement is not hindered.Vessels should be able to navigate at least eighteen hours per day on the waterways. Efficient loading and unloading facilities should be available at several 232.

points. The waterways should be adequately lighted and equipped with modern navigational and communication aids.If we have smart waterways, movement of cargo, be it food materials or cement, even from Punjab to neighbouring Bangladesh, can be done very effectively.Among other things, the technology imperatives for waterways are: .

Designing terminals to take care of both bulk handlingand general handling and storage introduction of mobile grab cranes and conveyer belt loaders introduction of lighterage system for transferring cargo as well as containers construction of floating jetties to provide flexibility in movement and designing appropriate jetties with necessary equipment depending on the nature, weight and volume of the cargo.

Introduction of modern electronics, satellite communication and information technology applications such as radio communication (short range) from sh.o.r.e to s.h.i.+p and s.h.i.+p to s.h.i.+p longrange communication using satellite links navigation using the satellitebased global positioning system (GPS) fleet management using a combination of satellite communication and navigation It is expected that by the year 2015 the access network would be able to support full mobility access throughout the network, the provision of personal phone numbers and that optical fibres would reach the subscriber's home.A very systems electronic charts for convenient positioning of vessels during their transist use of satellite systems for emergency situations and onboard equipment like lowcost navigation radars, echo sounders and VHF communication receivers.Thus modern electronic technologies can impart new vigour to an ancient transport system and also save considerable energy in the process.The oceans We can extend the idea of river navigation to coastal waterways.

Very few countries are blessed with oceans on three sides and a set of islands on two of them. For tourism or for trade, these provide excellent infrastructure in themselves. India has eleven major ports and 139 operable minor ports. The major ports are the responsibility of the central government and the minor ports that of the state governments. The eleven major ports are: Kandla, Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru port, Marmagao, New Mangalore, Kochi, Tuticorin, Chennai, Vishakapatnam, Paradip and Calcutta. Marked on a map, they form a beautiful garland. These ports account for 95 per cent of the total traffic handled.The annual traffic during 199697 was around 225 million 233.

tones it is projected that it will be about 390 million tones by 200001 and 650 million tones by 200506. The growth of traffic at Indian ports has been on the upswing over the last few years. However, productivity in terms of the Average s.h.i.+p Turn Around (ASTA) and the Average s.h.i.+p Berth Output (ASBO) needs to be improved to reach international standers. Considerable privatization is taking place at a number of minor ports. We believe that Indian ports should aim at much more. India can easily be an excellent destination for handling major international traffic. Our oceans and islands can also, if tapped effectively, be a rich source of a number of products of high economic value Networking the rivers In addition there is a much greater need for networking rivers. They would not only provide new water routes but also help distribute water from areas of excess to those that are deficient. We know that there are emotional and political issues involved. But we believe that as a nation marching towards developed country status, we should also learn how to share largesse and resources amongst ourselves and evolve an efficient water management policy. What we now have to aim at is creating more wealth and prosperity to share, and not reduce ourselves to petty squabbling over distributing poverty and cornering a few privileges.The IT mission So far we have discussed the conventional forms of infrastructure. In terms of modern infrastructure, telecommunications is crucial to any compet.i.tive economy. With the emergence of digital technology (which includes computers) data transmission has pervaded all aspects of life, under the name information technology (IT). We have seen how a whole range of service sectors have been opened up through IT. There are good possibilities for India to emerge as an IT superpower, with a large share of world business and also by being the originator of many new IT and software systems in the world.

For the past few years several committees and for a have addressed the issues relating to India becoming a major IT and software player in the world. India has become a destination for many of the world's software companies. Indian experts are being 'jobshopped' for by many companies. Indian software exports are growing by percentages of almost tens per year. The potential is far more. The primeminister's office has recently set up a National task force to address the issues involved and speed up the process of expansion of the IT sector in India. This means action on several fronts. The setting up of the backbone fibre optic networks be speeded 234.

up. The exclusive communication infrastructure available with many government agencies such as railways, oil, and the oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) has to be deployedas a data transport medium. The private sector has to be a encouraged and enabled to enter such activities.

Also, innovative systems have to be allowed to bridge the 'lastmile problems' of reaching the network to the actual user. All these would mean removal of various existing monopolies and allowing the Indian entrepreneurial spirit to flourish.In addition, steps have to be taken by the government to remove several irritating procedural bottlenecks to make even single person units of the IT industry come up all over the country. With a right mix of fiscal incentives, computers can be made available to large number of Indians. In fact as the revolution in telephone facilities has already linked towns and a large number of villages, it is possible to have the STD/ISD booths there by set up equipped with computers to send a email and receive data. Such activities can be run on a commercial basis, if government agencies reduce excessive entry fees and tariff rates at least for the next five years. We may soon have a situation where software export companies are located in India's villages! India's strength in software and IT are due to its talented youth. Despite many problems, our schools and colleges have prepared them for the new challenges. Many private initiatives have trained them for taking up specific jobs. Many poor families spend several thousands of rupees on their children to equip them for a computer job. Most of them rewarded.Development of software and IT technologies is progressing worldwide in a direction suitable to advanced countries: increased automation much less dependence on manual entries increasing use of higher end software for design, simulation, a.n.a.lyses and synthesis. Already the share of the developing world in the overall IT and software output or activities is at a low percentage. Our value added share in the IT sector may go down further if we do not address the matter of acquiring core strengths in the design and production of end systems. As one learned academic put it, 'we may import a large number of computers or computer components in SKD ( SemiKnocked Down) form along with other IT systems and software. We may spread them across the country. If we calculate the value added benefit to the economy and minus the import value ,are we plus or minus? That is the crucial question to answer'.

We believe we simultaneously need rapid expansion and attention to largescale commercial activities in the higher end value adding IT and software systems. Then alone can India keep balance between imports and exports in the IT and software sector. In fact we can create a major and sustained surplus in India's favour in a few year's time. speed is of the essence 235.

since a few late starters over the globe are trying to become IT giants and are working hard.One of the elements necessary to make India a major IT power is to strengthen IT education in the country. Many engineering and science colleges have to be facilitated to introduce modern IT courses with the private sector and even with foreign fonded initiatives. Constraining monopolies have to be removed and we should try new approaches.The key should be to create a large human resources cadre in all aspects of IT. That is the crucial infrastructure for India to become a major IT power. In order to realize this vision, telecommunications forms the bedrock. Again, in the not sodistant past, telephones were considered a luxury. Thanks to Sam Pitroda who brought telecommunications to the national centre stage and launched the CDoT project, telecommunication access and penetration has grown by leaps and bounds. The policy of opening up telecommunication to the private sector can speed up the process. Unfortunately however, monoplies do not break down easily. We hope the special focus on IT will lead to acceleration of telecommunication networks and extension of better services. A positive feature of the Indian telecommunications network is that the proportion of digital lines in the overall network is close To the world's best. The telecommunications network is therefore in need of substantial expansion as well as quality improvement. This is crucial if it is to support the wide range of services that are now becoming available. Ideally then, the country requires a predominantly digital network of sufficient bandwidth to facilitate voice applications in rural or urban settings, at the workplace or at home, and even in remote, hilly or isolated areas or in the islands, ensuring affordability, ease of use, mobilityand confidentiality.

For these services to be available to the maximum number of subscribers it is necessary to increase the number of lines, increase the proportion of digital switching technologies,increase capacity of the access and transmission network , and improve the quality of Customer PremisesEquipment(CPE). India could, by 2015, have a network which could be totally digital provide full coverage within the country provide mobile services based on the Personal Communication System provide personal communications services by satellite and provide end toend high bandwidth capability at commercial centres.

We could witness the following in the Indian access network by the year 2000. the provision of fibre to the kerb and fibre to the building the beginning of largescale deployment of HDSLI3 technologies on existing copper lines the beginnings of voice and data communications on the cablenetwork. wide range of CPE should be available and in use in the country. Specifically, we 236.

are likely to witness the widespread use of broadband CPE for applications running on theIntegrated Srvices Digital Network (ISDN) and the beginnings of computer telephony integration .We can expect routine useof multimedia terminals by 2015 providing video telephony and videoconferencing application on demand. Services and applications are expected to expand from voice ,videoconferencing and high bandwidth data applicationsin 2000 to extensive high bandwidth services available in the bigger cities at least, and several serious applications in education ,health and entertainment will be available .The overall vision includes continual efforts to spread services to alarge number of rural areas.That would call for innovative systems and flexibility in polices.

Rural connectivity 264.

Over a period ,a number of modern scientific and technological achievements have helped the rural areas as well. They have 265.

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