Bescom engineers to be trained

In a bid to modernise power distribution, the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom), in association with the Central Power Research Institute (CPRI), will train its engineers in state-of-the-art technology. 

The first phase of the training programme was inaugurated on Thursday by Kumar Naik, Managing Director, Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL). Following a memorandum of understanding signed between Bescom and CPRI, the latter will be training 1,200 junior and executive engineers for the next two years.

In his inaugural address at the training workshop titled, ‘Enhancement of operation and maintenance skills for Bescom Engineers,’ Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Managing Director, Bescom, said the training programme was aimed at improving the maintenance and networking skills of engineers and would also focus on safety aspects.

Addressing the engineers who will be undergoing training for the next three days, Pandey echoed the need for safety precautions, about which even the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission had expressed concern, stating that 450 deaths due to electrocution across the State was not a simple thing and that better and efficient maintenance could bring down the number of deaths.

Urging the engineers to concentrate on training, Pandey said constant supervision, operation and maintenance of the system will push efficiency up by at least 25 per cent.

He said the training will focus on enhancement of skills, wherein engineers will undergo training at CPRI, which is considered to be one among the unique research centres in the world.