RK Singh: ‘We believe we have to switch over to renewables … we will not only meet our commitment, we will exceed it’

With economic activity still in the process of restarting following the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown, Minister of Power and New and Renewable Energy RK Singh expects demand for power to “gallop”. In an interview to PRABHA RAGHAVAN and ANIL SASI, Singh discussed pent up demand for power, the status of the Centre’s emergency liquid funds to bail out discoms and its focus on hydro power as India shifts towards ramping up its renewable capacity. Edited excerpts:

Do you see Covid-19 impacting India’s demand for power in the long-term? How does the government plan to mitigate this?