In this paper, an approach to enhance the Extra High Voltage (EHV) Transmission system distance protection is presented. The scheme depends on the apparent impedance seen by the distance relay during the disturbance. In a distance relay, the impedance seen at the relay location is calculated from the fundamental frequency component of the voltage and current signals. Support Vector Machines (SVMs) are a new learning-by-example are employed in discriminating zone settings (Zone-1, Zone-2 and Zone-3) using the signals to be used by the relay. Studies on 265-bus system, an equivalent of practical Indian Western grid are presented for illustrating the proposed scheme.