Bhubaneswar, July 22 : In a powerful testament to Odisha’s emergence as a hub of skilled energy professionals with 50+ engineers, many of them women, managing India’s first of its kind statewide Power Distribution Technology Centre (PDTC). The centre operates round-the-clock in three shifts to ensure real-time monitoring, uninterrupted power supply, and seamless operations across the entire state.
Strategically located in Bhubaneswar, the PDTC is a first-of-its-kind digital nerve centre, integrating advanced grid control systems such as SCADA, GIS, ADMS, and Utility Data Stream analytics. The facility enables live monitoring and control of 250 SCADA-integrated primary substations across Central Odisha, making it the only integrated state level control centre in India’s distribution sector. It functions not only as the Main Control Centre (MCC) for TPCODL but also as the Backup Control Centre (BCC) for the SCADA integrated primary substations of rest of the Tata Power-led Odisha Discoms: 225 in TPWODL, 151 in TPSODL and 150 in TPNODL by integrating a plethora of remote automation technologies ensuring seamless operations and business continuity across all regions.
What makes this facility exceptional is its homegrown workforce. Engineers who manage this state-critical system hail from regions across Odisha such as Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Berhampur, Balasore, Angul and are graduates of state-run engineering institutions. With women professionals holding key operational roles, the PDTC reflects a model of inclusive, future-facing energy leadership built on the strength of local talent.
Behind this mission-critical infrastructure is a team of highly trained engineers from various districts of Odisha such as Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Ganjam, Balasore, Angul,. These professionals are alumni of local engineering institutions and work in three rotational shifts to ensure uninterrupted operations round the clock. Their contributions stand as a model example of the ‘Skilled in Odisha’ vision coming to life.
Among the key team members is Pravati Mishra, Executive Engineer at the PDTC, a resident of Bhubaneswar and passed out from CV Raman Engineering College, Bhubaneswar.
Reflecting on her journey, she says, “Having served in various roles from customer service to operations, contributing to Odisha’s first integrated control centre is a proud milestone. The PDTC is nerve centre of power system operations ensuring reliability, and we’re proud to make it safer and more responsive every day.”
Driving the reliability function at TPCODL is PragnyaSarada Das, HoG – Reliability, who joined Tata Power as a Graduate Engineer Trainee after passing out from Veer Surendra Sai University, Burla. She has been with TPCODL since its inception. She shares, “We’ve come a long way in building robust processes and providing reliable power supply. The PDTC is the embodiment of that transformation- future-ready, secure, and rooted in local capability.”
The PDTC also plays a pivotal role in monitoring Odisha’s peak demand, which now exceeds 6,000 MW, using real-time load forecasting and weather-integrated grid analytics to proactively manage supply and disruptions. The state-of-the-art centre operates as the control tower for rapid fault detection, automated switching, and intelligent outage management — transforming the way electricity reaches millions across urban and rural areas.
