DHANBAD: Addressing the 34th annual convocation of the Indian School of

(ISMU) here on Friday,

member Bal

called for popularizing power generation through wind mills. Chaturvey, who retired as a cabinet secretary, handed degrees to 757 graduates and 27 students who completed their PhD.

Chaturvedi said wind was a prolific source of renewable energy. In India, wind farms are working successfully in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra while states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Kerala have huge potential for wind power generation.

He regretted the huge losses in transmission and distribution which stands at 25%. "This is extremely high and needs to be reduced. It has to be realized that the losses can be reduced to that extent. It is also possible to utilize information technology and develop smart grid networks," he said.

The development of a smart grid network will be helpful in using the available power in the most efficient manner. It is an important initiative and needs to be pursued. Effective policy interventions and large investments are required to develop the distribution network in an efficient manner, the former bureaucrat said.

The second major initiative, according to him, was increasing generation capacities based on ultra-super critical and super critical technology. A large number of power plants work with coal. The conversion of energy is done by burning coal, producing steam and using it for power generation. The possible use of steam at very high pressure and temperature can generate larger power, he said.

But the commission member added that power plants require special boilers, turbines and generators for the purpose and can reduce coal consumption by 20-30%. India's economic development is linked to energy development and it is vital to manage energy demand and generate environment-friendly power to make the growth process simpler, was Chaturvedi's suggestion.

Meanwhile, Shivangi Garg was declared the best BTech graduate among girls and Jaiprakash Patel earned the title among boys. The strength of ISM has been increased from 3,562 in 2010-11 to 3588 in the current academic session.