RANCHI: For the first time in 78 years since Independence, electricity has finally reached Kudajharia village, located barely 21 km from the state capital, Ranchi, on the eve of 2026. Villagers said the prolonged absence of basic infrastructure such as roads, transport and power had deeply affected social life, to the extent that families were reluctant to marry their daughters into the village.
Officials and residents attributed the decades-long delay to the area’s difficult terrain and the lack of sustained political initiative.
The village, home to just 15 families, is located on a hill and has an extremely challenging geographical terrain. It has no proper roads or transport facilities, forcing residents to walk more than 1.5 km from the main Sikidari road to reach their homes.
Due to the absence of a motorable road, even the transformer had to be installed nearly a kilometre away at Ganjhutoli. Moreover, dense vegetation surrounding the village made it impossible to run 11,000-volt overhead power lines directly to the settlement, and electricity was therefore supplied through covered cables.
Villagers said the lack of basic amenities had long discouraged marriage alliances. “It was very difficult for boys in the village to get married, as nobody wanted their daughters to marry into a place without electricity. There were instances when youths showed houses in other locations to secure marriages,” said local resident Dileshwar Ganjhu. He added that the younger generation would no longer have to resort to such measures.
Ganjhu said he himself was rejected by more than nine families before getting married due to the absence of electricity. “We depended on lamps and lanterns for decades, but now our village is glowing with electric bulbs,” he said.
He added that until now there was not a single television in the village and only a handful of residents owned mobile phones. “Even those who had mobile phones had to walk nearly 2.5 to 3 km to Ganjhutoli to charge them at a relative’s or acquaintance’s house,” he said.
According to Ganjhu, the arrival of electricity feels like the village has finally attained true freedom.
Other residents echoed the sentiment, saying several generations had lived in darkness due to the lack of power. “Whether it was education or a medical emergency, every step was a challenge, regardless of the weather,” they said.
“But today it feels as if real freedom has finally reached our village. The entire landscape of this settlement, home to just 15 families and surrounded by dense forests, has been transformed with the arrival of electricity,” said another villager, Phoolchand Bhokta.