Bhubaneswar: As many as 831 villages in Odisha have no electricity supply and still remain in darkness. The areas include 447 villages in Gajapati, 353 in Koraput and 31 in Kandhamal districts under SOUTHCO power utility limits in the state.
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This was answered by Energy Minister Captain Dibya Shankar Mishra, replying to a ‘Non-starred Question’ raised by Congress leader and Jatni legislator Suresh Kumar Routray.
Despite several welfare programmes and schemes of the Centre as well as the State government, residents belonging to these villages and colonies are devoid of a basic amenity like electricity.
According to distribution company (DISCOM) sources, 47,677 villages inhabited by local residents in the state have been adequately electrified under different government yojanas.
However, additional electricity infrastructure development works are underway at some places. It has been targeted to provide power supply to the remaining villages by March 31, 2021 under Twelfth Plan of the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) and by December 31, 2020 under the Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana – ‘Saubhagya’ respectively.
PNN