This paper by Girish Sant and Shantanu Dixit, was published in Energy for Sustainable Development, the Journal of the International Energy Initiative, Volume III, No.1, May 1996. The agricultural consumers in India are charged mostly on the basis of connected load (kW) and not that of the actual consumption (kWh). The end-use efficiency of agricultural pumps is dismally low. This paper analyses the factors affecting efficiency and evaluates Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS / ISI) as well as the norms of the National Bank for Agricultural And Rural Development (NABARD) applicable to the agricultural pumping systems. It is pointed out that relatively simple changes in the BIS standards can result in national savings to the tune of US $ 129 million (over rupees 500 Cr.) per year, assuming 50% implementation.