PM for electrification of 200 villages every week

Over 5,000 villages electrified under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Yojna so far; target is to electrify 18,452 villages in 1,000 days

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked the Power Ministry to target electrification of around 200 villages every week by holding regular follow ups with the state implementing agencies.

"The Prime Minister has said that Ministry of Power must strive to complete electrification of 200 villages every week by following up with state implementing agencies regularly," a source said adding, that progress with regard to electrification of villages should be properly highlighted.

"For electrification of the balance villages, the Power Ministry must follow up with state implementing agencies to ensure timely sanctions, procurement, installations and commissioning activities," the source said.

Over 5,000 villages have been electrified under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojna (DDUGJY).

In view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation on Independence Day last year, the ministry had decided to electrify 18,452 villages within 1,000 days, that is, by May 1, 2018.

The project has been taken on mission mode and strategy for electrification consists of squeezing the implementation schedule to 12 months and also dividing village electrification process in 12 Stage milestones with defined timelines for monitoring.

The Centre has fixed a target of electrifying 7,000 villages by March-end, Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal had earlier today said.