About the roundtable: APCO, in collaboration with Chintan Research Foundation (CRF), organised a High-level Policy Roundtable titled “Bridging the Rural–Urban Divide in Reliable and Quality Power Supply: A Path to Equitable Development with Focus on Uttar Pradesh” on 07 July 2026 in Lucknow. The event brought together policymakers, regulators, power utilities, industry experts, and researchers to deliberate on strengthening Uttar Pradesh's power distribution ecosystem. The inaugural session set the context for addressing regional disparities in electricity access and featured the release of a policy brief on the theme. The technical session focused on areas: bridging the rural–urban divide in electricity access and service quality; strengthening distribution infrastructure and DISCOM financial sustainability; enhancing power reliability to support economic growth; and leveraging technology, digitalisation, and policy alignment to build a future-ready and resilient power sector.