India Targets Indigenous SCADA Systems For Power Grid By 2030—CEA Report

India has launched a major initiative to reduce dependence on foreign technology for power grid control systems by phasing out imported Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems and developing domestic alternatives. The initiative follows directions from the Prime Minister’s sectoral review and the Ministry of Power and aims to strengthen India’s energy security, cybersecurity and technological self-reliance.

A specialised committee headed by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) was constituted in December 2025 to prepare a roadmap for the phased indigenisation of SCADA, Energy Management Systems (EMS) and Distribution Management Systems (DMS). The initiative supports the government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India programmes while addressing risks linked to foreign original equipment manufacturers, supply chain disruptions and cybersecurity threats.

SCADA systems are critical to the operation of India’s power grid and play a central role in supporting the “One Nation, One Grid, One Frequency” framework. However, the country has historically relied heavily on proprietary foreign platforms. This dependence has resulted in challenges such as inconsistent naming conventions, limited interoperability between systems, delays in cybersecurity updates, and vendor lock-in.

The committee noted that software accounts for around 25% of SCADA system costs, while hardware represents nearly 75%. Despite this, domestic content in grid SCADA systems currently remains below 20%, highlighting the need for rapid development of indigenous technologies.

The committee has proposed a phased roadmap covering financial years 2026–27 to 2028–29. During 2026–27, India is expected to localise core data acquisition systems, front-end processors, historian databases and basic communication protocols such as ICCP. More advanced applications, including State Estimators, Automatic Generation Control, Optimal Power Flow and Dynamic Security Assessment, are targeted for domestic readiness during 2027–28.

The final phase, scheduled for 2028–29, will focus on complex applications such as Outage Schedulers, Dispatcher Training Simulators and specialised transmission monitoring systems. On the hardware side, servers, workstations, storage systems and NavIC-based time synchronisation equipment are expected to move towards domestic adoption within two years. Telecom networking components will follow broader indigenisation guidelines issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Department of Telecommunications.

The committee has also recommended establishing a National SCADA Mission or a dedicated working group under the Ministry of Power to coordinate implementation. Development could follow either a nomination-based model involving organisations such as C-DAC or a consortium model led by Power Grid Corporation of India and Grid-India.

A government-funded testing platform is also proposed to conduct cybersecurity assessments, while real-time pilot projects at Load Despatch Centres would support field validation. Grid-India is expected to establish a dedicated technical team for long-term implementation, upgrades and maintenance, supported through grants or the Power System Development Fund.

The committee concluded that India has sufficient domestic research and development capabilities, including C-DAC’s Rudra servers and academic software platforms, to achieve SCADA indigenisation within the 2026–29 period, provided adequate funding, testing facilities and institutional support are made available.