DOES GREATER AUTONOMY IMPROVE PERFORMANCE? EVIDENCE FROM WATER SERVICE PROVIDERS IN INDIAN CITIES

We assess the efficiency of urban water supply in 27 Indian cities using data envelopment analysis (DEA). We also group cities by the management structure of their water utilities. Utilities with greater degree of functional autonomy perform better, supporting the hypothesis that more autonomy in management leads to better performance among water utilites. Our results also have implications for urban domestic water pricing--most of the utilities operate under decreasing returns to scale (DRS) implying water should be priced at marginal cost of supply.

The Physics of the B Factories

This work is on the Physics of the B Factories. Part A of this book contains a brief description of the SLAC and KEK B Factories as well as their detectors, BaBar and Belle, and data taking related issues. Part B discusses tools and methods used by the experiments in order to obtain results. The results themselves can be found in Part C

Replication and scaling-up of isolated mini-grid type of off-grid interventions in India

Providing basic minimum energy services has become a real challenge for developing countries of the world. India encounters the problem of provisioning basic minimum electricity services to a section of her population. Renewable energy-based decentralised systems have emerged as a viable electrification option for many developing countries of the world, particularly for rural and remote areas of the country. This study explores the replication and scaling-up of potential of such mini-grids in the least electrified states of India by considering a set of evaluation criteria i.e. grid-extension option, renewable energy resource potential, electrification rate, organisational strength, presence or absence of technical support system, and ease of access to banking services. Overall rankings suggest that top 20% districts offer good business potential for private investors to venture into the mini-grid market. However, the concern lies with the districts placed at the bottom, which require specific government interventions through appropriate policy, regulatory and financial support

Marginalisation of Off-grid Energy Sector in Sri Lanka: What Lessons could be Learnt?

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Renewable energy based off-grid projects have played a crucial role in Sri Lanka’s universal electrification effort. The paper in this context unravels two crucial and quite interrelated aspects of decentralised off-grid energy development in the country; i) to critically analyse the off-grid electricity sector development and assess its contribution to the universal electrification in the country, and ii) to examine the current challenges associated with the off-grid sector in the larger context of massive grid expansion. A mix of quantitative and qualitative research methods is employed as an analytical tool. The paper brings out several policy relevant findings. Strategic policy interventions coupled with targeted policy goals, robust community centric interventions, well designed credit systems, and well-structured capacity building initiatives are identified to be key leveraging points for success of off-grid micro-hydro projects. The techno-economic analysis of existing micro-hydro project reveals there exist opportunity for more productive use of such projects. Grid interconnection of off-grid energy projects is a major emerging challenge involving a whole gamut of technical, legal, regulatory, financial and social issues. Interestingly, the intensity of these challenges differs across ownership types

All Change: Equitably Decarbonising India's Transportation Sector

open access reportExecutive summary: Key findings • There is limited focus on just transitions in the transport sector: in both academic literature and policy to date, technical solutions have received policy and research priority, but there is limited focus on how end-users will be affected by transport transitions, and whether these transitions will be equitable, inclusive and just. Several factors should be addressed under this: ensuring that transitions lead to affordable mobility solutions for all users is a key point, as is ensuring that job losses from high-carbon mobility services are compensated for by job creation in low-carbon mobility. From our key informant interviews, policymakers are focused on the supply-side when considering transport transitions, contrasting with users’ concerns of demand-side support and downstream services, particularly for electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. These tensions need to be addressed in policy. • There is potential for significant socio-economic impacts from the transition: this research has investigated the potential pains and gains of the transition to electric mobility, particularly electric road transport, in the Indian transport sector. There is potential for job losses both in the downstream oil sector and the downstream mobility services sector as the EV transition progresses due to reduced petroleum product consumption and a lesser burden of maintenance for electric vehicles compared to ICE vehicles. This also has the potential to impact government revenues from fuel taxation and place a higher burden on the government purse from increased electricity subsidy outlay. • Just transition alternatives exist: from the scenarios presented in this research, it is clear the current policy trend does not foreground justice and equity in the low-carbon transport transition, and this will lead to significant negative impacts for disadvantaged sectors of society. Policy alternatives exist to foreground justice in the transport transition, including participatory co-development of policy with end-users, and engendering greater coordination between transport and energy sectors and within the transport sector to ensure users are targeted equally across socio-economic strata with low-carbon mobility solutions