Rural Electrification: A Survey on Karnataka's Prospects

Karnataka is the 8^th largest state in the country with 5.83% of geographical area, comprising of 30 districts, 176 Taluks, 745 Hoblies consisting of 30,000 villages inhabited. State Government has planned to stipulate the projected target of National Electricity Policy [NEP], the planned initiatives are providing quality power supplies to villages, hamlets, Harijans Bastis and thandas. This paper explains rural electrification as a component of National Electricity Policy which had a target of zero unelectrified inhabited villages in the state by implementing various electrification schemes at rural areas of Karnataka, with special references towards dedicated feeders, renewable energy sources and various flagship programmes by various agencies. The 11^th five year plan initiatives have been brought in discussion in this paper.