Energising Agriculture though Sun in Bihar

The recent growth trajectory of Bihar has strongly placed her as one of the fastest growing state economies on India’s roadmap of development; however, for years the state has also witnessed a mounting rise in energy and electricity demand which is expected to continue in the foreseeable future. Bihar faces the herculean task of energizing the rural economy and uplifting millions of masses out of abject poverty and darkness. This poses a formidable challenge for the state to build energy infrastructure with robust planning followed by effective implementation with transforming schemes to keep pace with the ever-growing economic and societal changes. Although the reach and quality of electricity supply has improved in the last 4-5 years due to some effective and efficient government initiatives particularly the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yozna (DDUGJY) and ‘Subhagya’ scheme, however the same has not yet reached its full potential in the agricultural sector (only 43% metered agriculture connections in electrified villages in 2017).