UTTARAKHAND VILLAGES BORDERING CHINA TO GET ELECTRICITY FOR FIRST TIME; KNOW HOW LOCALS LIGHT UP THEIR NIGHTS
Uttarakhand villages that border China have been deprived of electricity for decades as the development projects were unable to reach these remote areas. But soon these villages will get connections as the Centre has sanctioned Rs 85 crore to electrify the remote villages of Vyans and Darma valleys in Pithoragarh’s Dharchula.
These villages have been without power since independence. Now the initiative to light up these villages will be carried out as part of the Vibrant Village program aimed at rapidly expanding basic facilities in these border regions.
The electrification project will connect these villages to the National Grid. The project involves laying a 33 kV line from Tawaghat to Gunji, spanning about 65 km and an 11 kV line from Gunji to Kalapani and Kuti, as well as to Sipu and Marchha in Darma Valley. The completion of this power line is targeted by the end of the current year.
How These Villages Function Without Electricity Connection
Currently, the absence of electricity in about one and a half dozen villages in Vyans Valley and over a dozen in Darma Valley has led villagers to rely on solar energy to light up their nights. The tender process for the power line construction has been initiated but is on hold due to the electoral code of conduct. The work is scheduled to commence following the lifting of the code.
Rajendra Singh Gunjyal, the Superintending Engineer at Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL), confirmed that the tender will be opened postcode and the electrification will bring much-needed energy to the border villages.