Big News

USTDA clears $1 million grant to power utility in Delhi; BJP inducts Biplab Deb as chief minister of Tripura; Haryana inaugurates an internal treasury department; Boeing and Telangana’s T-Hub launch innovation challenge HorizonX; Punjab and Chhattisgarh send 500 MW of power to Tamil Nadu; and more.

Center-State relations

The cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA) approved a two-year, $177 million initiative to provide subsidized farm machinery to farmers in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana for in-situ management of crop residue. Source: Money Control In Detail: Press Release

Andhra Pradesh

The Andhra Pradesh government announced a $29.3 billion budget, with a projected revenue surplus of $804 million, for financial year 2018-2019. Source: Economic times In Detail: Budget in brief 2018-2019, Budget Documents

Andhra Pradesh signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with U.S.-based ConsenSys, which will provide technical advisory services to pilot use-cases in blockchain technology. Source: Inc42

Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has demanded that the central government should assign the state special-category status. Source: Financial Express

Amplus Energy Solutions signed an agreement with Andhra Pradesh to install 200 megawatt (MW) solar power capacity with an investment of $184 million, expected to create 400 jobs in the state. Source: Money Control

Bihar

The Bihar Electricity Regulatory Commission (BERC) published its annual tariff order for the state-run generation, transmission, grid company and dispatch center for 2018-2019. Source: Times of India In Detail: Tariff Order for Bihar Grid Company, State Load Dispatch Center, Power Generation Company, and Power Transmission Company

New Delhi

The United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) cleared a $1 million grant to power distribution company, BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL), to run a behavioural energy efficiency pilot program and a grant to Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited in the area of distributed energy resources (DERs). Source: Live Mint, India Today

The first section of Delhi Metro’s 13-mile pink line was inaugurated by the Delhi government. Source: Times of India

Gujarat

Nothing critical to report this week

Haryana

The Haryana government released its budget for 2018-2019 with an outlay of $17.7 billion, an increase of 12.6 percent over the last year. Source: Indian Express In Detail: Budget 2018-19

The Haryana government finalized a three-phase action plan for the development of an international aviation hub at Hisar. Source: The Hindu

The Haryana government will establish Haryana State Financial Services Limited, a new non-banking financial company, to act as a treasury manager for state-run entities. Source: United News of India

Karnataka

The Karnataka government’s Department of Innovation, previously the IT department, introduced a new legal framework to help start-ups adjust to new regulations, and a new entrepreneurship initiative promising $5,520 over a year to entrepreneurs incubating their idea with the state’s startup cell. Source: Times of India

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has signed a partnership agreement with a French company to set up a 10 megawatt (MW) waste-to-energy plant. Source: The Hindu

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh government will conduct a study to measure the ‘happiness quotient’ of the people. Source: Hindu Business Line

Maharashtra

Amplus Energy Solutions signed an agreement with Maharashtra to build 300 MW solar capacity in the state, ground-mounted and rooftop, requiring an investment of $230 million. Source: Money Control

The Maharashtra finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar presented the state’s budget for 2018-19. Source: Economic Times

According to the latest economic survey of the state, Maharashtra’s economic growth has dropped to 7.3 percent. Source: Indian Express, Live Mint In Detail: Economic Survey of Maharashtra 2017-18

Maharashtra, in its latest auction of wind power projects, has allotted winners with tariffs higher than the lowest price offered in previous wind auctions in the country. Source: Economic Times

Around 30,000 farmers from all over Maharashtra are on a protest march from Nashik to Mumbai demanding clearing farmers’ balance sheets, ensuring remunerative prices for crops, and implementing the forest rights act. Source: Business Standard

Rajasthan

The Rajasthan government will extend its crop loan waiver scheme to all farmers who had availed loans of up to $768 from cooperative banks. Source: The Tribune

Rajasthan instituted one percent reservation in jobs and educational institutions to Gujjars, four other castes and six sub-castes grouped under ‘most backward classes’ category. Source: The Tribune

Tamil Nadu

The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Limited (TANGEDCO) begun receiving 500 MW of power from Punjab and Chhattisgarh as part of an energy swapping initiative. Source: Times of India

TANGEDCO is establishing a 1,600 MW supercritical thermal power plant at Uppur. Reliance Infrastructure and BHEL were awarded contract for $560 million and $857 million respectively. Source: The Hindu

Telangana

The Telangana government launched We-Hub, India’s first state-led incubator exclusively for women entrepreneurs. Source: Business Standard In Detail: We-Hub website

Boeing and T-Hub have partnered to launch Boeing HorizonX, an innovation challenge, which will select three startups who will work with Boeing teams in a three-month start-up accelerated program. Source: The Hindu In Detail: Boeing HorizonX India Innovation Challenge

Uttar Pradesh

The Uttar Pradesh has decided to open up its state’s organized farm produce market for private investment and participation. Source: Business Standard

ReNew Power inaugurated a 16 kilowatt (kW) micro-grid in Paniyara village in Uttar Pradesh and also agreed to develop 1 gigawatt (GW) of solar power and 200 MW of waste-to-energy projects. Source: Pv-Tech In Detail: Press Release

West Bengal

West Bengal made lower capital expenditure under the economic sector against the budget estimates in 2015-2016 and its electricity distribution company is reported to have incurred losses of $2.7 billion in 2015-2016. Source: Money control In Detail: Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India on State Finance for 2015-2016- West Bengal

Best of the Rest

Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim

Assam, Himachal Pradesh, and Sikkim state governments announced their annual budgets for the year 2018-2019. Source: United News of India, Zee Business, India Today In Detail: Himachal Pradesh Budget

Tripura, Nagaland, Meghalaya

After recent elections in the northeast states, Biplab Deb of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was inducted as the chief minister of Tripura, Neiphiu Rio of the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party was sworn in as the chief minister of Nagaland for the fourth time and Conrad Sangma is the new chief minister of Meghalaya. Source: Live Mint, Finance Express, The Hindu

Punjab

The Punjab government signed a MOU Australia-based Goodles to set up four monsoon impact incubators with 50 social start-ups at a proposed investment of $768,000. Source: United News of India