On the third day of the Bharat Electricity Summit 2026, a high-level vendor development session titled Advancing Make in India for Power Distribution was convened by REC Limited (REC) and Power Finance Corporation (PFC). The session brought together over 150 senior representatives from the Ministry of Power (MoP), the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), leading distribution companies (DISCOMs), the Indian Electrical and Electronics Manufacturers' Association (IEEMA), original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), vendors, suppliers and industry associations. KPMG served as the knowledge partner for the deliberations. The session was chaired by Shashank Misra, Joint Secretary (Distribution) at the MoP, and opened with context-setting remarks from T. S. C. Bosh, Director (Projects) at REC. Industry perspectives were presented by IEEMA and leading DISCOMs outlined best practices in modern distribution operations. Presentations covered indigenisation efforts for Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems and the application of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) in distribution management. A panel moderated by senior officials including Pranav Tayal from the MoP, Saurav Kumar Shah of PFC and Prabhat Kumar Singh of REC examined India’s readiness to bolster domestic manufacturing and supply chains. The discussion emphasised scaling proven DISCOM practices such as compact substations and planned underground cabling with GIS-based fault management. Integration across SCADA, Distribution Management System (DMS) and Outage Management System (OMS), together with Real-time Data Acquisition System (RT-DAS), was identified as critical for operational efficiency. Panelists highlighted persistent gaps in import-dependent materials and urged reinforcement of standards, interoperability and testing infrastructure to ensure reliability and resilience at scale. The session stressed that strengthening testing and certification capacities would support deployment of indigenised equipment across networks. Closing remarks were delivered by Ravi Dhawan, Director (Distribution) at the MoP. Organisers indicated that the Bharat Electricity Summit 2026 remains a pivotal platform to align government, industry and utilities towards the vision of a Viksit Bharat 2047. Attendees were encouraged to translate dialogue into coordinated action to advance domestic manufacturing in power distribution.