Gottipati Assures Assembly To Fill 2,947 APEPDCL Vacancies
The government has spent ₹839.44 crore towards free farm power supply during 2025–26.
Vijayawada: In a twin push to strengthen power distribution and reinforce support to the farming community, Energy minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar informed the AP Legislative Assembly that the 2,947 vacancies in Andhra Pradesh Eastern Power Distribution Company Limited (APEPDCL) will be filled shortly.
Responding to questions raised on Thursday by MLAs Bandaru Satyanandarao and Konathala Ramakrishna on separate issues, the minister outlined the government’s comprehensive action plan to modernise infrastructure, bridge manpower gaps and ensure uninterrupted quality power supply under the leadership of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Detailing the vacancies, Ravi Kumar disclosed that APEPDCL needs to fill the posts of 581 energy assistants, 1,260 junior linemen, 1,084 assistant linemen and 22 linemen. “These posts will be filled at the earliest to strengthen field-level operations and improve service delivery,” he stated.
The minister said at present, there are 8,770 outsourced personnel who are helping prevent service disruption and ensuring that consumers do not face inconvenience.
As part of infrastructure augmentation, he emphasised that new substations are being sanctioned based on load requirements. Electrical Divisional Engineer offices are being set up to streamline administration.
On the agriculture front, Ravi Kumar pointed out that over 22.30 lakh free agricultural power connections are currently operational across Andhra Pradesh. Of these, 1,02,538 free connections have been sanctioned across the three DISCOMs after the new coalition government assumed office. He said there are nearly 46,000 pending applications, which will be cleared before the upcoming agricultural season.
The minister said during 2025–26, the government has spent ₹839.44 crore towards free farm power supply. Under the PM-KUSUM scheme, 2,61,481 agricultural connections have been sanctioned so far. Feeder-level solar projects are expected to save ₹1,059 crore, with tenders invited for 1,035 MW capacity. The state aims to achieve 4,000 MW generation capacity by 2028–30, ensuring nine hours of quality daytime power to farmers, Ravi Kumar added.
