For the diesel genset business, it is an exciting time in India,” says Gagan Chanana, director, powergen and distribution business, Jakson Group. “The market is growing at a fast pace due to increased infrastructure activity, and diesel gensets are the only reliable back-up power solution, not just in India but globally,” he says.
Chanana has nearly 25 years’ experience in the power sector, of which a majority (nearly 15 years) have been spent with Jakson, an energy and engineering solutions company. In his current role, Chanana provides strategic direction for the growth of the Cummins-Jakson range of gensets in India and Nepal. He is also responsible for Cummins’ after-market dealership, global training centre facility and distributorship of Cummins’ Singapore business in Bangladesh. Chanana also leads Jakson’s relationship with Cummins and has overall responsibility for strategic planning and P&L for the power generation and distribution business at Jakson.
Chanana believes that the power sector will witness significant growth in the coming years. “The government has announced landmark power sector programmes like the Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana, the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana and the Unnat Jeevan by Affordable LEDs and Appliances scheme, with the aim of providing power to every Indian. In addition to power generation from traditional fuels like diesel and coal, the government has ambitious targets for renewable energy adoption in the country,” he says.
According to him, among the technological innovations taking place in the power sector, one area that will see significant growth is hybrid power solutions, which will comprise a combination of diesel, solar and batteries. “Contrary to popular perception, diesel gensets and renewables are not interchangeable but complementary sources of energy. Diesel gensets are back-up sources of power, whereas renewables are a primary source of power,” he notes.
Chanana believes in a collaborative approach to management. He empowers his team by giving them the opportunity to take independent decisions.
Chanana has a degree in mechanical engineering. He likes to maintain a healthy work-life balance and as such, tries to not take work back home. He also makes it a point to spend quality time with his family on weekends. He enjoys travelling and hopes to visit the Caribbean Islands sometime in the future.