BHUBANESWAR: Nearly eight years after the Biju Gram Jyoti Yojana (BGJY) programme was launched, 4000 habitations still remain out of the rural electrification programme till date.
The State Government launched the scheme with an aim to provide electricity to the habitations having a population of less than 100 and not covered under the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutkaran Yojana (RGGVY).
The Government identified 17,847 villages with less than 100 population under BGJY. However, the cumulative achievement till the end of December 2014 was 14,028 habitations.
The report submitted to the Assembly Committee on Energy said the State Government has released Rs 587 crore out of which Rs 396.95 crore has been utilised.
Three districts of Balasore, Boudh and Jajpur have recorded 100 per cent achievement while tribal dominated Kandhamal, Kalahandi and Sundargarh are lagging behind. Performance of Gajapati and Ganjam districts are not very encouraging. The State Government had taken major restoration works in the power sector in the two districts which were severely affected by cyclone Hud Hud last year.
The Energy Department had set a target for distribution companies - CESU, Nesco, Southco and Wesco - to energise 2763 lift irrigation (LI) points under BGJY. The achievement till the third quarter of the current financial year was 1900 LI points.
The Department has also set a target to renovate about 7848-km length of 11 KV feeder lines under the State-sponsored programme. However, the discoms have replaced 5,725-km length of conductors during the same period.
Though the Government had targeted to provide electricity to 2,743 habitations having less than 100 population under the Biju Saharanchal Vidyutkaran Yojana (BSVY), about 2014 habitations were reportedly electrified by end of 2014.
The State Government launched the BSVY in 2010 to provide electricity to the people living in un-electrified areas, mostly in the slums, in the urban local bodies (ULB) of the State.
The report claimed that 1,66,495 BPL households in rural areas and 21,516 households in urban areas have been provided electricity free of cost. Of Rs 2.38 crore released under BSVY, the discoms have utilised Rs 1.56 crore.
The House Committee had recommended to the Government to raise the budgetary allocation under BGJY scheme from Rs 75 crore to Rs 100 crore for the current financial year.