India’s power sector just received a major vote of confidence from one of the world’s most respected development finance institutions — and it’s a Jaipur-based company leading the charge.
The Funding: Rs 710 Crore ($80 Million) From British International Investment
Polaris Smart Metering Private Limited has secured nearly $80 million — Rs 710 crore — in financing from British International Investment (BII) for its subsidiary Hooghly Smart Metering Private Limited.
This isn’t a typical startup funding round. BII is the UK Government’s own development finance institution — meaning this is a sovereign-backed bet on India’s energy infrastructure future.
The financing will support the deployment of over 2.2 million smart meters in West Bengal, further strengthening Polaris’ Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) footprint and contributing to India’s broader energy transition agenda.
Who Is Polaris Smart Metering?
Founded in 2010 in California by Yashraj Khaitan, Polaris offers end-to-end smart metering services, including manufacturing, installation, communication systems, and software support. The company claims it has executed smart metering projects in some of the toughest terrains in India, including Ladakh, Kargil and Bihar, and was the first private company to do so.
Polaris is headquartered in Jaipur, India, and is a portfolio company of I Squared Capital — a global private equity fund focused on infrastructure with $40 billion+ in assets under management.
In 2023, I Squared Capital acquired Polaris for $100 million — and since then, the company has been on an aggressive growth trajectory, building one of the largest smart metering businesses in India.
The Scale of Polaris — Numbers That Command Attention
This is not a small or emerging player. Polaris is already operating at serious national scale.
The company currently has an order book of around $1.1 billion, covering projects across Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Manipur, with a total of 7.5 million electric meters. It also operates in the smart gas metering segment with 1.6 million meters.
| Metric | Details |
| Order Book | ~$1.1 Billion |
| Electric Meters (Contracted) | 7.5 Million |
| Smart Gas Meters | 1.6 Million |
| Latest Funding | $80 Million (BII) |
| Subsidiary for West Bengal | Hooghly Smart Metering Pvt. Ltd |
| New Meters to Deploy | 2.2 Million (West Bengal) |
| Investor | British International Investment (BII) |
| Parent Company | I Squared Capital ($40 Bn+ AUM) |
What Is a Smart Meter — and Why Does It Matter?
Most Indians still have traditional electricity meters — the kind where a meter reader physically visits your home every month, notes the reading, and a bill arrives weeks later.
Smart meters replace this entire process with real-time digital intelligence.
Smart meters are digital devices that record electricity consumption in real time and send data directly to power companies. This helps in accurate and transparent billing, reducing power theft and losses, better monitoring of electricity usage, and faster detection of faults and outages.
The deployment in West Bengal is expected to support utilities in improving billing accuracy, operational efficiency and consumer transparency at scale. The smart meter rollout will also help improve grid efficiency, reduce distribution losses, and enable better integration of renewable energy into the power system — helping build a more resilient, reliable and sustainable distribution network.
For ordinary consumers, this means no more estimated bills, no more manual meter reading visits, and eventually — the ability to monitor your own electricity usage in real time through an app.
What Will the $80 Million Be Used For?
The BII financing has clear, deployment-focused objectives.
The funding will be used to deploy over 2.2 million smart meters in West Bengal and expand Polaris’ Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) footprint.
Beyond just installing meters, Polaris aims to improve the overall efficiency of electricity distribution. With smart metering systems, power companies can analyse consumption patterns in real time, manage peak demand more effectively, reduce operational costs, and improve service reliability for consumers.
What the Leaders Are Saying
Yashraj Khaitan, Founder & CEO of Polaris, framed the vision clearly:
“This financing marks an important milestone in Polaris’ journey to help build a smarter, more transparent, and future-ready power distribution ecosystem for India. At Polaris, our ambition goes beyond meter installation — we are focused on enabling a more efficient, accountable, and financially resilient grid that can support India’s renewable energy ambitions and long-term energy transition.”
And BII’s India head endorsed the strategic importance of this bet:
Shilpa Kumar, Managing Director and Head of India at British International Investment, said: “We are pleased to support Polaris Smart Metering as India strengthens its power distribution network. Smart meters play a crucial role in reducing losses, improving reliability and enabling better integration of renewable energy.”
The Government Push Behind It All — RDSS Scheme
Polaris’ rise is not happening in isolation. It’s riding a massive wave of government-backed infrastructure spending.
The Government of India launched the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) with an outlay of approximately Rs 3 trillion ($35 billion). A key pillar of the scheme is the nationwide rollout of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), with a target of installing 250 million smart meters by 2027.
250 million smart meters. By 2027. That’s one of the most ambitious infrastructure deployments in human history — and Polaris is positioned at the very heart of it.
India’s smart metering market is expected to grow rapidly due to government initiatives for power sector reforms, increasing urbanisation and energy demand, and the need for efficient and loss-reducing energy management.
Why a UK Institution Is Betting Big on India’s Power Grid
British International Investment is not a commercial venture capital firm. It is the UK Government’s development finance institution — designed specifically to invest in businesses that drive economic growth and sustainable development across emerging markets.
British International Investment is the UK’s development finance institution that invests in businesses across emerging markets.
The fact that BII has chosen to put $80 million into an Indian smart metering company is a signal that resonates beyond the boardroom. It tells the global investment community that India’s energy infrastructure story is credible, scalable and investable — at sovereign level.
Polaris’ Track Record — Built in the Toughest Conditions
What makes Polaris different from the dozens of energy tech companies operating in India today is its track record of execution in genuinely difficult conditions.
The company claims it has executed smart metering projects in some of the toughest terrains in India, including Ladakh, Kargil and Bihar — and was the first private company to do so.
If you can deploy smart meters in Kargil — one of the most remote and climatically extreme regions in the world — you can deploy them anywhere. That operational credibility is exactly what large-scale government contracts and international investors look for.
Key Takeaways at a Glance
| Detail | Info |
| Company | Polaris Smart Metering Pvt. Ltd |
| Founded | 2010 (California) / India operations since 2012 |
| Founder & CEO | Yashraj Khaitan |
| Headquarters | Jaipur, Rajasthan |
| Investor | British International Investment (BII), UK |
| Amount Raised | Rs 710 Crore (~$80 Million) |
| Subsidiary | Hooghly Smart Metering Pvt. Ltd |
| Use of Funds | 2.2 Million smart meters in West Bengal |
| Total Order Book | ~$1.1 Billion |
| Electric Meters (Total) | 7.5 Million |
| Gas Meters | 1.6 Million |
| Parent Company | I Squared Capital ($40 Bn+ AUM) |
| Govt Scheme Context | RDSS — 250 Million meters by 2027 |
The Smart Grid Revolution Is Here, and Polaris Is Leading It
India’s electricity distribution system is being digitised at a pace the world has rarely seen. Behind that transformation are companies like Polaris — quietly building the hardware, software and infrastructure that will power the next generation of India’s energy economy.
Polaris offers end-to-end smart metering services — from manufacturing to deployment, communications infrastructure and software platforms — making it one of the most complete players in India’s advanced metering space.
With $80 million from the UK Government’s own investor, a $1.1 billion order book, and 250 million meters to be deployed across the country by 2027, the Jaipur-based company isn’t just participating in India’s energy transition — it is helping lead it.
