Rural Electrification: Role of Decentralized Distributed Generation

Rural Electrification is viewed as the key component for accelerating

rural development. However, a large section of the rural population in India
is still devoid of this basic minimum requirement for a decent living.
According to the latest statistics, only around 60% of rural households are
covered with electrification. On top of this, the quality and duration of
supply of electricity across India, especially in rural areas, is added to the
existing agony. The primary cause of such sub-standard services are poor
record for outages, high levels of transmission and distribution (T&D)
losses, theft and an overall poor and mal-functioned infrastructure.
To combat this, during the 11th Five Year Plan, the Government of
India plans to provide access to electricity to 100% un-electrified villages
and 100% households. Electrification of about 1.15 lakh un-electrified
villages and electricity connections to 2.34 households Below Poverty Line
is envisaged. In this context, alternative approaches to rural electrification
have been proposed. They typically combine centralized grid connections
as distribution franchises and Decentralized Distributed Generation (DDG)
operated at the local level taking advantage of renewable energy
technologies. The DDG projects, if widely replicated, can reduce the
burden on both electricity supply shortfalls and reducing the urgency of
costly grid extension. DDG offers the potential for affordable, clean and
reliable electricity with minimal losses and effective maintenance and local
cost recovery.
The experience of DDGs with the use of renewable energy sources
has so far delivered mixed results due to a range of impediments. The
instrumental ones amongst them are financing challenges along with
institutional, technical and geographical constraints.

One of the major reasons of failure of the renewable energy

technologies in rural areas through DDGs is probably the lack of “buy-in”
by the local community. Though it is clearly mentioned in the 11th schedule
is “Rural electrification, including distribution of electricity' to be devolved to
the Gram Panchayats”, hardly any measure has been taken to promote the
same. Encouraging panchayats to take up decentralized power distribution
will lead to increase community ownership of the projects and upkeep of
maintenance services, Panchayats should generate fund to impose user
fees/ taxes on a monthly/ bimonthly basis. At the same time the Gram
Panchayats need to assume the key role in ensuring that the assets
created are used and maintained properly.
 Certain groups at Panchayat level can be made responsible to raise
and maintain stock and steady supply of resources such as biomass which
is perhaps the most cost effective and carbon neutral technology. Its’ also
important to remember that such efforts, so far as possible, should have
minimal impact on fodder or other uses for the rural communities;
otherwise the cost of biomass will push up and ultimately will have an
adverse impact on the interest of the communities.

The support system to maintain and run the set of equipments of the
DDGs has not been given its due importance. Trainings of local youths can
be arranged at the panchayat level for proper skill development. Finally,
the political willingness would also play a crucial role for the success of
DDG model.