Nandan Nilekani, the visionary behind India’s Aadhaar system and co-founder of Infosys, has made a bold prediction that has sent waves of excitement through the Indian entrepreneurial and tech communities. During an event for entrepreneurs, Nilekani shared his foresight that the next big revolution in India, much like UPI (Unified Payments Interface), will take place in the energy sector. His prediction is sparking new conversations about how energy distribution and consumption might radically transform in the near future.
Let’s delve into what this Digital Energy Grid (DEG) could look like, and how it could turn every Indian household into a potential micro-entrepreneur.
Energy: India’s Next UPI Revolution
Nilekani’s vision is clear: the energy sector in India is ready for a decentralised, digital transformation, similar to what UPI achieved for digital payments. The central premise behind this shift lies in the growing affordability and availability of rooftop solar panels and electric vehicles (EVs) with storage batteries.
Key Points to Consider:
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Rooftop Solar Panels: Solar energy installations are becoming increasingly accessible for Indian households.
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Electric Vehicles (EVs): EVs with storage capabilities offer homes the ability to store energy.
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Prosumers: Consumers will transition into “prosumers” (producers + consumers), generating and trading energy.
Nilekani’s core idea is that in the future, every home could be an energy producer, seller, and buyer. This would pave the way for a Digital Energy Grid (DEG), allowing millions of small producers to trade electricity, which would lead to a new economic ecosystem.
What Could This Energy UPI Look Like?
Nilekani’s vision paints a picture of an interconnected energy system where every household plays a role in the production, consumption, and distribution of energy. Here’s a closer look at how the Digital Energy Grid could function:
1. Rooftop Solar Installations
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Homes will harness solar power during the day.
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Excess energy produced can be stored or sold to the grid.
2. EV Battery Storage
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Electric vehicles will double as mobile storage units for energy.
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Homes can use stored energy during off-peak hours or sell it when needed.
3. Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading
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Similar to how UPI enables instant transactions, the DEG will allow instant energy exchanges between homes, businesses, and the grid.
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This will create a peer-to-peer energy trading system.
4. Micro-Entrepreneurship in Energy
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Just as small vendors use UPI to run businesses, households could sell their surplus energy.
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This creates a new generation of energy entrepreneurs.
This vision of the Digital Energy Grid (DEG) could fundamentally reshape how energy is accessed, stored, and traded in India, leading to millions of energy entrepreneurs just as UPI created a digital payments revolution.
UPI’s Phenomenal Impact: A Benchmark for DEG
The success of UPI serves as a strong benchmark for what DEG could achieve. Since its introduction, UPI has:
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80% of India’s retail digital payments are processed via UPI.
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In January 2025, UPI recorded over 16.99 billion transactions, amounting to Rs 23.48 lakh crore.
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UPI has expanded globally, being adopted in 7+ countries including the UAE, Singapore, France, and Mauritius.
This level of digital empowerment that UPI brought to India could soon be mirrored in the energy sector, leading to clean energy access, financial benefits, and innovation for both rural and urban households.
India’s Green Digital Future: A Reality in the Making
The Indian government has already laid a strong foundation for this transformation:
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Solar Subsidy Schemes: Increased support for rooftop solar panel installations.
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Promotion of EV Adoption: The government’s FAME 3 program aims to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles.
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Smart Metering and Grid Digitisation: Efforts to improve energy grid infrastructure with smart meters.
With Nilekani’s Digital Energy Grid (DEG) vision and India’s existing digital infrastructure, this energy revolution could become a reality sooner than we think.
FAQs:
1. What is the Digital Energy Grid (DEG)?
The Digital Energy Grid (DEG) is a vision for a decentralised system where households can produce, store, and trade energy. This will allow energy to be exchanged between homes, businesses, and the grid, much like how digital payments work through UPI.
2. How will households benefit from DEG?
Households will have the opportunity to become energy producers, selling surplus energy to the grid or to others. This could create a new source of income and empower individuals to participate in the energy market.
3. How does DEG compare to UPI?
Just like UPI revolutionised payments by allowing instant money transfers between individuals, DEG will allow instant energy exchanges. Both systems are digital, decentralised, and aim to empower individuals to become entrepreneurs.
4. What is the government doing to support this transition?
The Indian government has introduced initiatives such as increased solar subsidies, incentives for EV adoption under FAME 3, and the digitisation of energy grids to support the growth of clean energy and the Digital Energy Grid.
The future of energy in India looks bright and digital, with millions of new entrepreneurs ready to emerge in this dynamic space. With Nandan Nilekani’s vision, we are poised to witness an energy revolution that mirrors the success of UPI.
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