Centre clarifies on electrification of 'all villages'

A Union Power Ministry release here said the average actual household electrification level in rural areas is more than 82 per cent with variations across states.

"Definition of village electrification is a legacy issue which, though, mandates electrification of at least 10 per cent households in a village," it said.

"As per recent reports from the states, household electrification level in rural areas is more than 82 per cent, ranging from 47 to 100 per cent across various states. "

The Ministry said the variation in the level of household electrification across various regions and states is primarily because of differences in "size, heterogeneity regarding topography, location, resources and also because of varying efforts made by the states".

"The government has already moved out of this dichotomy and launched the Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya) to achieve universal household electrification in the country by December 31, 2018. Therefore, the debate over the definition of village electrification in the present scenario has lost significance," it said.

All villages in India have now been connected with electricity, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Sunday. On Saturday evening, Leisang village in Manipur's Senapati district became the last village to be connected to the national power grid.