The
Indian government on Monday said rural electrification
work is progressing slowly due to delay in receipt
of detailed project reports, finalisation of below
poverty line lists and poor electricity infrastructure.
"Delay
in receipt of detailed project reports (DPR), finalisation
of below poverty line lists, poor electricity infrastructure
are some of the reasons for the slow progress of
the rural electrification programme," Minister of
State for Power Jairam Ramesh said in a written
reply in the Rajya Sabha (upper house).
The
government plans to electrify 1,15,000 villages
under the Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana
(RGGVY).
Lack
of awareness among villagers for taking connections,
poor rural electricity infrastructure, difficult
terrain in some states and floods are also some
of the reasons for delay, Ramesh said.
For
effective implementation of RGGVY, the government
has taken numerous steps, including setting up of
an inter- Ministerial Monitoring Committee to review
the progress of the project.
Rural
Electrification Corporation (REC), the nodal agency
for RGGVY, conducts review meetings with all the
stakeholders - state power utilities and implementing
agencies - for implementation of the scheme on the
agreed schedules.
In
order to take care of cost escalation, cost norms
for rural electrification have been revised upward,
Ramesh said.
