Sea of changes are taking place in the Karnataka power sector today. Changes of this magnitude cannot take place and become a success without sound leadership and discipline. Transformation needs leaders with visionary thinking and the ability to manage the change to inspire employees at all levels to work towards the common goal of making the power reforms a success. One such man who is a blessing to Karnataka's power sector is Bharat Lal Meena, the Managing Director of Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Ltd and Chairman of all ESCOMS (Power distribution companies in the state). Meena has a profound understanding of the Indian power sector for having witnessed the dramatic changes in this sphere over a period of nearly two decades. This long and remarkable experience has enriched his understanding of ground realities as well as the impact and implications of policy in power generation, transmission and distribution of restructuring power utilities. Equally, it has deepened his understanding of power consumers and consumption patterns and problems. As Secretary to the Karnataka Electricity Board for two years from October 1989, he saw the beginnings of a profound change in policy approaches. Several years later, in 2003, he saw, first-hand, as Managing Director of the Bangalore Electricity Supply Co. Ltd., the issues engaged in taking power reforms forward. In the interim, as Director, Ministry of Steel, Government of India, he had strengthened his understanding of the implications of industrial demand for power. His previous experience as Deputy Secretary to the Health & Family Welfare Services of the Government of Karnataka, as Chief Secretary to the Belgaum and Shimoga Zilla Parishad and, later, as Deputy Commissioner with the Dakshina Kannada, Mangalore and Uttara Kannada districts, intensified his understanding of power supply in relation to agricultural and other rural and small town requirements.

Meena's terms as Additional Secretary with the Women & Child Welfare Department, Director of Mass Education, Managing Director of the Karnataka Land Army Corporation, Housing Commissioner of the Karnataka Housing Board and Managing Director of the Cauvery Neeravari Nigam Ltd, reinforced his sensitivity to the needs of various population segments with regard to infrastructure needs. Hailing from the back-of-beyond village of Sundari in Sawai Madhopur of Rajasthan, Meena started as a Clerk-cum-Coin Note Examiner in the Reserve Bank of India, then as a Probationary Officer at the State Bank of Patiala and then served for a year in the Rajasthan State Administrative Service before he joined the IAS in 1984. The talented and committed, Meena sought the opportunity to act on his ideas and dreams and BESCOM provided the opportunity that Meena grabbed and created the pivotal moment for this. Meena has found his niche in Karnataka that itself has pioneered many of the developments in India's power sector, like India's first hydro-electricity generating station that was established at Shivasamudram in 1902.

KPTCL at present serves over 110 lakh consumers of different categories spread all over the State, covering an area of 1.92 lakh square kilometres. To transmit and distribute power in the State, it operates nearly 684 sub-stations, 28,000 Kms of transmission lines with voltages of 33 KV and above, nearly 1,30,000 Kms of 11 KV lines, 1,50,000 distribution transformers and 3,57,000 Kms of LT lines. A pioneering State along with a determined innovative mind like Meena, have created a success story in the power sector that only few can ever hope to emulate. Meena's initiatives are contagious with the enthusiasm that he exudes. And why not too? He has proved that though his envisions may have seemed quite unthinkable for India, they are very much possible. With his endeavours and unwavering determination, transmission losses have been reduced to 4.18 percent. The distribution losses have been brought down to 23 percent, which is among the lowest in the country. It is actually all about bringing in an all-pervasive replication from a paradigm, or a benchmark-example, that he has set up.

Bringing T & D losses to an abysmal 9% is a phenomenon that could hitherto only have been dreamt in the electricity transmission and distribution dynamics of India but he has shown the nation that it is not only possible, but can be improved upon even further which is reminiscent in the envisions he has kept for the future. The fact that T & D losses cost the nation a staggering 100,000 plus Crores per annum, Meena is the most outstanding protagonist for the containing of this wildfire. With states like Delhi having T&D losses in the vicinity of 45%, one can well imagine what conservation and efficiency he has shown the way for. One can hope that others learn from the splendid example he has set and thus, save an enormous sum of money for the Government that could definitely be utilized for other development programs for our nation. In a 2004 study on the performance of ten Indian electricity supply companies by Diya Consulting of Hyderabad, BESCOM was ranked best in terms of least distribution losses and least transformer failure rate. BESCOM has had zero transformer failures in the last three years and its distribution losses stand at 9.5 percent, the lowest of all power distributors in the country.

In addition, Meena has also initiated the launch of the Rural Load Management Scheme (RLMS) in all the ESCOM's. Initially introduced in the area under BESCOM, the scheme is aimed at ensuring 24-hour power supply to rural industries and communities, through an innovative style of load management wherein the irrigation pump set (IP set) load and other loads (for lighting, industry, educational institutions, and others) are bifurcated at the distribution transformer level to prevent outages on feeders. The Power supply is controlled by Programmable logic Controller, where the programmes are pre-set.

Meena has been involved with social development organizations such as Yuvaka, Yuvathi and Mahila mandals, committees like the School Betterment Committee, Anganwadi Salaha and Sandarshan samitis, and in partnering non-government organizations for various development programmes. He has done pioneering work in peoples participation programmes in Community Development through "Apna Desh" an NGO. This rich experience has lent to Meena a rounded understanding of infrastructure requirements and impact on overall economic and social development. This knowledge and sensitivity has been built on an abiding interest in social development, an interest that began during Meena's student year at Rajasthan University, from where he graduated with a Master's degree in Political Science. Later, he refined this interest at the University of East Anglia, UK, from where he graduated with a second Master's degree in Rural Development.

A man of diverse interests, Meena enjoys reading and writing, has deep interest in spiritual matters and a sportsmanlike interest in various sports.