Shekhar Kelapure to Chair India Government Initiative
Shekhar Kelapure, Senior Scientist within the Transmission & Distribution System lab at Global Resarch in Bangalore, was recently nominated to Chair, Working Group: Advanced Transmission, India Smart Grid forum — an Initiative of Ministry of Power, Govt. of India. In this role, Dr. Shekhar will work closely with utilities, regulators & industry players in the Smart Grid domain, in framing up strategies for Smart Grid related to transmission domain in India.
Shekhar is actively involved in research activities in the area of Power System Analytics, Automation, and Operations & Control. He is a Senior Member of IEEE and has 15+ international & national publications in the area of electrical engineering to his credit. He has delivered more than 30 Invited talks to Academic Institutions and Utilities in India and abroad.
We got Shekhar to tell us a little more about his new role post this fantastic achievement.
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
After completing my Ph.D. in Power System at IIT Delhi (2000), I began my active contribution to research and development in power system operations, especially the Energy Management System domain, a key enabler to Smart Grid, working with Power Utilities. I traveled to France, Ethiopia, Chile and Bangladesh in connection with establishing National Control centers for Energy Management in respective countries. I was also involved in commissioning of the prestigious National Load Dispatch Center at New Delhi, and Western Regional Load Dispatch Center, Mumbai, India. In addition, I was consultant to National Grid, UK for procurement and commissioning of Off Line Transmission Analysis software. I began working with GE in 2010, with the GE Energy team at Hyderabad and subsequently transitioned to Global Research’s Transmission & Distribution System lab in April 2011. My primary focus is development of technologies in Smart Grid domain in the area of Stability for Transmission network and efficient operation of Distribution grids.
You recently joined Global Research and have already secured a role with the Govt. of India. How did this happen and in what way has your experience at GRC helped?
In my previous role, I had a solid working relation with Utility Experts in India and abroad. The India Smart grid forum, a Public Private Partnership Initiative of Ministry of Power, Govt. of India, is a body composed of experts in power industry, responsible for providing the framework for deployment of smart grid technologies in India. GE Global Research and the GE Energy Team has been actively engaged with utilities in expanding the reach of smart grid technologies in India. So the current role is in recognition of GE’s depth in Smart Grid technologies and our robust relations with utilities.
Tell us a little more about what new your role entails.
In this new role as Chair, Working Group: Advanced Transmission, India Smart Grid forum, I will be closely working with the utilities, regulators and industry players in Smart Grid domain, framing up strategies for Smart Grid, related to power transmission, in India.
Besides work at GE what are some of your other passions/ hobbies that take up your free time?
Other than GE’s work, I am Senior Member of IEEE and share industry experience with student and research experience with industry professionals, to bridge the gap between industry and academics.
