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By R.K. Goyal
National Power Training Institute (NPTI) is the first training institute in the government corporate sector that has achieved self-sustenance with exemplary performance. This year the performance reached a new crest and is the highest ever achieved in its history of 39 years, said Dr B.S.K. Naidu, director general, NPTI, while talking to media persons in Faridabad recently. ?Trainee weeks peaking over 75,000, number of trainees exceeding 11,500 during the year and revenue earnings at Rs 1,333 lakh (a quantum jump of 313 lakh over the previous year)?this way the organisation has acquired self-sustenance. This has been a creditworthy accomplishment in every way and an example of brilliant team effort?, said Dr Naidu.
NPTI has nearly four decades of professional experience in the field of education, training and human resource development. Dr Naidu pointed out that the Government of India had sanctioned in December 2003 a GIS Resource Centre housing hi-tech training tools for training and consultancy in the area of GIS-based electricity distribution network planning and management at a cost of Rs 123.7 lakh. The same was commissioned on March 31, 2005. This facility will be used for training under Distribution Reforms Upgrades and Management (DRUM) Project and Accelerated Power Development Reforms Programme (APDRP).
The Ministry of Power had also sanctioned a scheme for setting-up of combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) simulator in May 2003 at a cost of Rs 552 lakh. Within less than two years, the project was completed and trial-commissioned on March 31, 2005, in association with ECIL and NTPC, taking the Faridabad combined cycle power project as the reference plant which is a 430-MW power station housing 2×143 MW gas turbines and 1×144 MW steam turbine.
NPTI established a regional power training institute at the temporary site of Narangi complex of ASEB, Guwahati, on September 23, 2003. NPTI also signed an MoU with Power Grid Corporation of India on March 1, 2005 for construction of a permanent institute at Kahalipara, Guwahati.
Dr Naidu indicated that having been identified as the nodal agency, NPTI is conducting specialised training programmes on technology improvement in grid operation for CEA/REB engineers. Out of the targeted 120 engineers to be trained in India and abroad 58 have already been trained at NPTI in Faridabad, at PSTI and BHEL on a programme designed by NPTI in consultation with CEA and PGCIL.
NPTI has taken the initiative of launching a ?first of its kind? training programme on power distribution of 26-week duration for engineers at its two prestigious units at Nagpur and Power System Training Institute (PSTI), Bangalore. As many as 25 graduate engineers are undergoing this specialised course.
