The Centre has proposed an outlay of Rs 22,000 crore for power and renewable energy sector for 2020-21, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.
In her second Budget presentation, the finance minister said the Centre has proposed that discoms should replace conventional meters with smart pre-paid meters and give option to consumers to choose electricity suppliers.
State governments need to replace conventional electricity meters with pre-paid smart meters in three years, she said.
The finance minster also said natural gas pipeline grid will be expanded to 27,000 km from over 16,000 km now and further reforms for transparent price discovery for natural gas will be undertaken.
She further said that 100 more airports will be developed by 2025 to support the UDAN scheme.
Rs 1.7 lakh crore has been provided for transport infrastructure in 2020-21, she added.
Sitharaman also said 1,150 trains will run under the public private partnership (PPP) mode, also four stations will be redeveloped with the help of the private sector.
Besides, the minister promised more Tejas type trains to connect tourist destinations.
She said a proposal for setting up large solar power capacity alongside rail track is under consideration.
