24-hr power in rural area may be a reality

INDORE: The state government's aim of providing uninterrupted power to rural areas by separating the power feeders has begun to take shape. About 6,000 feeders of 11KV will be separated and the project would be executed in two phases and would be completed by 2013. Till date, 383 feeders have been separated and tested. The state government has given Rs 500 crore interest-free to three power supplying companies.
The project initiated at the behest of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in 2010 will help domestic users in rural areas get 24-hour power supply once the work is over. Complaints about poor power quality supply in rural domestic areas due to single feeder prompted the .
The three companies are- Paschim Khsetra Vidyut Vitran Company, Madhya Kshetra Vidyut Vitran Company and Purvi Khsetra Vidyut Vitran Company.
The project has been divided in two phases. In the first phase 1,107 feeders' separation would handled by the Rural Electrification Corporation. The project is being taken up in 23 districts and the estimated expenditure is Rs 1,721 crore. It is likely to be completed by 2012. While the ADB has in principle agreed to fund the second phase of the project. The estimated cost for the phase II project is Rs 2,529 crore. The state government is speeding up paper work to get the amount sanctioned at the earliest.
Of 383 feeders separated in the first phase, 2,359 villages have benefited by the project. "Before the feeder separation, we were hardly getting power supply of five to six hours a day. After the separation we are getting some 20 to 22 hours power supply for domestic use and continuous eight hour supply for agriculture purpose," said Charan Singh, a farmer of Sanawadia village on the city outskirts.