Seven states submitted proposal to seek funds under the government’s ‘Power for All’ plan to ensure electricity to unlit households.
These are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Mizoram, Nagaland, Gujarat, Assam and Chhattisgarh, RK Singh, minister of state for power and new & renewable energy, said at a press conference in New Delhi on Thursday.
The government introduced the Rs 16,320-crore Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana-Saubhagya (Hindi for ‘easy access to power for every house – a good fortune’) to ensure electricity in all urban and rural households in September.
The scheme aims to provide power to about a fifth of 120 crore Indians estimated to have no access to power by December 2018.
He also said camps will be held in unelectrified villages to capture data and give connections. “We have asked the states to announce the schedule in every village.” he said. The target for electrification is over 4 crore households. “It’s a challenge but we will achieve the target by December next year,” said Singh.
The government has launched an online platform for the scheme. “States would feed in the current status of electrification works, enabling the creation of a system of accountability and help in increasing their viability,” he said.
Source: bloombergquint
