Educational reach and grasp

Over the past few weeks, new data releases have provided a wealth of information about different aspects of the state of the country's development and the diversity of conditions across states. The Socio-Economic and Caste Census, which I wrote about in my previous column, is one of these. Two reports from the 71st Round of the National Sample Survey, carried out during January-June 2014 also add to the data pool. One of these deals with household behaviour and expenditure on health services, while the other covers education. This column provides perspectives on some of the findings of the education survey.

The education survey covered about 66,000 households across the country, of which about 37,000 were rural. It sought information about standard indicators relating to institutional affiliation, attendance, access to incentives such as meals and scholarships and so on. Three indicators, which were of particular interest to me under the "reach and grasp" motif, were physical access, use of supplementary services - private coaching - and access to and ability to use computers and the internet.

I take it as given that, other things being equal, physical access to a school is a significant determinant of whether kids enrol and attend regularly. Minimising travel distance, time and effort required must be a key education policy objective. For many rural households, presumably, there is little room for choice between schools; it is only a question of whether it is physically feasible to attend. Urban households are more likely to have choices, but have to take quality and cost differences into account.

On the physical access criterion, there is both good news and not-so-good news. In rural areas, for the country as a whole, 94 per cent of households had access to primary school facilities (Classes 1-4) within 1 km and all households had access within 2 km. However, there was a sharp drop-off in access to upper primary (Classes 5-8) and, further, to secondary schools (Classes 9-12). Only 67 per cent of households had access to upper primary schools within 1 km. Of course, older kids can physically handle longer commutes; from this standpoint, over 97 per cent had access within 5 km. At the secondary level, only 37 per cent had access within 1 km, while 12 per cent had to send their kids to schools over 5 km away.

There is considerable variation across states on this parameter. Hilly and relatively sparsely populated states, of course, have lower densities. Of the larger states, Telengana has 100 per cent access to primary schools within 1 km, while, interestingly, Kerala reached only 62.5 per cent. Local conditions, including transport services obviously matter. It is also logical to expect a change in the location pattern as kids move from lower to higher segments. However, perhaps we should be thinking of location and access benchmarks for rural schools, which minimise the adverse impact of difficult access on enrolment and attendance. The larger context in which this issue becomes important is the sharp drop-off in enrolment between primary and secondary schools - almost 30 percentage points. How much of a factor is physical access in this transition?

As might be expected, the access problem is much less significant for urban households. Ninety-two per cent have access to primary schools, 83 per cent to upper primary schools and 73 per cent to secondary schools within 1 km of their residence. Here, the issue is of quality and cost. Parents need to have a simple and transparent quality and cost metric to be able to base their decision on and regulators need to monitor and enforce some basic quality standards.

The second indicator that caught my eye was the prevalence of demand for private coaching. We all have our prejudices about private coaching. Is it a necessary evil or a legitimate substitute for parental and family supplements? Whatever one may see it as, the fact is that it is costly and a source of iniquity across households. Be that as it may, the survey shows, as might be expected, that there is an increase in usage as kids grow older and there is a persistent gap between boys and girls. In the primary segment, 23 per cent of boys and 20 per cent of girls across combined rural and urban households use private coaching. The proportion increases to 28 per cent and 25 per cent in the upper primary segment and 38 per cent and 35 per cent in the secondary segment.

Here again, there are some striking variations across states. In West Bengal, 71 per cent of boys and 63 per cent of girls in primary school rely on private coaching. By contrast, in Uttar Pradesh, only 12 per cent of boys and nine per cent of girls use coaching at this level. Does this reflect different aspirations? Or, differences in the quality of the education system? Each interpretation of these variations will have its own policy implication.

The third indicator that I think deserves deep scrutiny is digital access. We have, of course, separate estimates of telecom connectivity and smartphone usage, which are shaping the larger debate on delivery of benefits. This survey focus provides estimates on household possession of computers and, besides this, internet access for at least one member of the household who is above the age of 14. Six per cent of rural households and 29 per cent of urban households possess computers. Not surprisingly, the less affluent states typically have penetration lower than the national average. On the internet access parameter, the picture is a little more comforting; 16 per cent of rural households and 49 per cent of urban households meet this criterion of access.

From the perspective of using technology to improve access and quality of education, these numbers suggest that it is going to be a long haul. However, this should not deter experimentation and scaling in areas in which penetration is reasonable. Above all, providing computer access to as many schools as possible is imperative.

As the government works its way through to a new education policy, it must draw upon objective analysis of these data as well as the wealth of other evidence on what works and what doesn't that is available. Of all aspects of public policy, the costs of being wrong on education will be both high and persistent across generations.

weekened classes by SAMVEG IAS,DEHRADUN

Madhav Chavan Man with a mission

Pinning down Madhav Chavan, co-founder and CEO of Pratham, for a lunch with Business Standard proved harder than I expected. After several emails he agreed, sounding totally disinterested in the 'lunch' part of it (he said he didn't know any of the restaurants in Delhi I suggested - The Imperial hotel, Machan at The Taj Mahal Hotel or Latitude in Khan market), leaving the choice of venue entirely to me.

We are finally seated at Machan. He takes one look at the menu and the communist in him - given the influences he grew up with, as I learn subsequently - wakes up instantly. "These prices make no sense," he says and I agree, rather hastily. Although he makes it sound like it's not worth eating at this place, we place the order to get it out of the way as soon as possible. I begin by asking how a chemical engineer ended up educating poor children in India.

What one is trained to do, what one plans to do, and what one actually ends up doing can be radically different and Chavan's life is a shining example of that. After spending eight years in the United States in the late 1970s, Chavan was drawn back to the country he felt most comfortable in. He started teaching at the University of Mumbai's Department of Chemical Technology (now known as The Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai) and while things were going smoothly, he soon started asking himself what he was doing there.

Questioning everything might have had something to do with the way Chavan grew up. An only child of communist parents, he grew up in Mumbai in a community surrounded by trade unionists. He says the late 1960s and early 1970s in Mumbai were "a time of extremes" - the Shiv Sena was just born, trade unionism was at its peak, there was "terrorism of a different kind". "Our house was an office by day and a place for many to sleep at night. It was a very different kind of home," he says. Growing up in this environment, he did a fair share of "protesting".

A teachers' strike at the university in 1988 led Chavan to write an impassioned letter to then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi about the state of education in the country and where it was headed. The letter must have struck a chord somewhere - soon after, Chavan found himself summoned by then Union Education Secretary Anil Bordia (after Rajiv Gandhi had passed on the letter to him), a man Chavan credits with many things, including his own involvement in education.

Bordia challenged Chavan - he argued that Chavan and others must walk their talk - and gradually drew him into the National Literacy Mission and the adult literacy campaigns. In 1991, after the death of Rajiv Gandhi and the financial crisis India found itself in, the National Literacy Mission started losing steam. "Rajiv Gandhi was gone, money was a problem, the country faced a big financial crisis. Things didn't work out the way they were planned but many of us continued to work in the sector."

Chavan's work in the slums was also growing as was his disenchantment with his teaching job at the university and Bordia at that point (in 1991) relieved him of his teaching duties so that he could join the mission full time. "What I liked about the mission was the thinking that governments can't make people literate, people have to make themselves literate."

Unicef's primary education project in Mumbai had also begun to gain momentum at the time. The idea was to involve the government, businesses and civil society in Mumbai and create a "societal mission". The Tata group patriarch, JRD Tata, was alive at that time and he was also pulled in. "They spoke to Shobhaa De, Sunil Gavaskar, Vijay Tendulkar - just about everybody to build consensus around it." Everyone agreed this was what had to be done but no one knew how to go about it.

At some point, the Unicef head in Mumbai asked Chavan to take the ball and run. There has been no looking back. People from all walks of life were pulled into the trust. Some of the biggest names of Indian industry - for instance, ex-banker and philanthropist Narayanan Vaghul - helped shape, finance and take the organisation where it is today. The Birlas, the Piramals and Reliance all did their bit.

Chavan argues that Pratham may not have been what it is today without the support of people like Vaghul. "In a way, Vaghul became the champion of what we were attempting. He told us, don't worry about the money, just go ahead, I will raise the money for you. You create programmes, get the projects cleared by the board and I will find the money."

He also gives credit to India Inc. While Indian industry was not what it is today - in size, scale or financial muscle - those who could help the mission, did. Several companies, whose employees were working full-time on the Pratham movement, continued paying salaries to these employees.

Something that started small has grown into a big movement today, with people from all walks of life joining along the way. Pratham, the NGO he helped found and heads at present, reached out to around seven million children across the country last year (it directly teaches about a million students a year in community- and school-based programmes and also partners with the government). It has 46,000-odd volunteers. Pratham works directly in about a thousand villages across 20 states. It has a USA chapter and funding is no longer a problem.

We are halfway through the lunch - his '1980 Lucknowi Gosht biryani', a signature dish at Machan, and my Thai green curry and rice. So where are we today? How far have we come from the 1980s and 1990s? Aren't some of the problems that plagued India's education then still alive today?

This clearly needs a second lunch but he plunges right in. Getting children to school was a problem then and it remains a problem today. Today, children may be registered but many schools are virtually dysfunctional and learning outcomes are abysmally low. Students who end up going to school don't end up learning very much. This becomes a chicken and egg situation because students drop out when they fail to see value.

Chavan argues that the failure of children to read and write and do basic arithmetic should be attributed to a lack of "focus on the basics". "What is our school model? It asks teachers to complete the curriculum in a prescribed time. You can rush through it if you like, but you have to complete it. Nobody has laid down that certain measurable outcomes should be attained," he says.

This is evident from the Annual Status of Education report released by Pratham, which, year after year, shows little improvement in the quality of outcomes across states. "Let's start by laying down the measurable basics we need to attain. Even that has not been clearly articulated," Chavan laments.

Pratham tries to correct this mismatch by running small pilot programmes and even though it reaches several million children, the effort remains a drop in the ocean. Given India's population, Chavan's - and Pratham's - task is far from over

Getting talent and youth into politics

All successful professions have a usual career pattern - bright talent comes in and does the grunt work in the initial five years. After these learning years, talent moves to the middle tier where it performs and achieves recognition. After a few years, luck permitting, a few make it to the top tier, where their decades of experience help them deliver outcomes. Most importantly, talent takes over from the older generation of leaders, who could become mentors.

An example is the Chinese cabinet of ministers, where most members have been mayors of large Chinese cities or governors of provinces. They have experience of delivering governance and projects at the city or province level. They started their careers at the cutting-edge level, and rose through the ranks. Even if they have powerful parents, they still have to go through the grind. And when Xi Jinping takes over, Hu Jintao does not try to cling to power.

An Indian example would be the thriving music industry after the end of the Lata Mangeshkar-Asha Bhonsle duopoly. One can only surmise how many wonderfully talented singers were shut out during these decades of duopoly. TV talent-spotting contests have made that a thing of the past.

However, Indian politics is still very much a closed shop, with leaders in their 80s and 70s still refusing to go into vanaprastha, or retirement. Older leaders ensure their progeny's succession into their parliamentary or legislative assembly seats, leading to political dynasties in Indian states and the Centre. Almost all political parties, save three, are distinctly 'family shops' - focused on maximising power and wealth at the state and central level, as well as keeping challengers out.

In an open political system, India would have seen talented politicians contesting elections at the city ward and panchayat level. With success, they would have moved onto becoming mayors and district panchayat presidents. From this talent pool would have emerged the candidates for parliament and the legislative assemblies, of whom the brightest would have gone on to become ministers in states and the centre. The few who'd become chief ministers and prime minister would have gone through the grind and would deliver good outcomes. Indeed, this was happening somewhat in India till 1993, before the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments. Significantly, dynasties and gerontocracies have become more powerful in the 20-odd years since then.

Was it accident - or, more probably, design? These constitutional amendments enacted rotational reservations - a foolproof way of shutting out young political talent. This applies to all elections except those for MPs and MLAs. Alarmingly, few in the commentariat know about these provisions, let alone the consequences. Had these same rules been applied to MLAs and MPs, Naveen Patnaik, Sheila Dixit, Shivraj Singh Chouhan or Narendra Modi would have been single-term chief ministers, unable to even contest for a second term.

A quick look at the provisions. We know about reserved seats for SCs (Scheduled Castes) and STs (Scheduled Tribes) for MP and MLA elections. Articles 330 and 332 of the Constitution are very similar, setting out the process of reserved constituencies for MPs and MLAs respectively till 2026, when the next delimitation exercise takes place. In these reserved constituencies, bright and talented SC and ST candidates are firmly focused on re-election, and work hard. However, in all other elections - whether for municipalities, panchayats, mandis, cooperatives and others, rotational reservation means that the incumbent is ineligible to even run for re-election. Thus a bright OBCwoman mayor will not be able to contest the next mayoral election since the seat moves to a SC or ST reservation, and so on.

The process is devilishly simple. There are four kinds of seats - reserved for SCs, STs, OBCs (Other Backward Classes) and unreserved. Within each, there is a one-third reservation for women. In each election, the reservation for the seat 'rotates' among the four categories: SC to ST to OBC to unreserved, such that it is impossible for the sitting Mayor or Panchayat leader to even be eligible for running for the next election. These provisions are in Article 243T for urban and Article 243D for panchayat elections. The operative words are "such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies" in a municipality/panchayat. I served as district election officer over two terms of municipal elections and panchayat elections and have first-hand knowledge of the drawing of lots for rotation in reservation. All states have rules for such rotation which ensure that most incumbents are ineligible to contest again. The only exception is when a reserved seat becomes unreserved, and the incumbent may run for office again.

The impact is a double whammy. Without any re-election incentive, one-term wonders rationally maximise their own benefit, without bothering about public welfare or service quality. At the same time, the ruling elite of MPs and MLAs act as patrons, putting forward their own "clients" to run for urban and panchayat elections, knowing full well that such short-lived clients pose no threat to the elite's progeny.

Thus, in the last two decades, fresh political talent has seldom proven itself at the city and panchayat level and gone on to contest the MLA or MP election. For a budding political activist, the route available is usually pledging unquestioning allegiance to a strong MLA or MP. It is not running for office and demonstrating great service delivery. Any political office apart from the MLA and MP is not really seen as worth contesting. This is also why city mayors and district panchayat presidents, who could improve public services, are largely disinterested observers in a system where MPs and MLAs, through IAS officers, run the show in cities and districts.

Contrast this with the rise and rise of state governments after the S R Bommai judgment in 1994, which ensured that Article 356 was no longer used for frivolous dismissals of state chief ministers. Since then, we have had many three-term and two-term CMs, who have raised their state GDP at a rapid clip. Indeed, a state CM is much more powerful that India's PM, as Narendra Modi doubtless realises. Had rotational reservation been applicable for MLAs, such strong leadership and growth in state GDPs would probably been much lower.

It is time to scrap rotations in reservations for cities and panchayats and have fixed reservations in constituencies, on the same lines as MPs and MLAs. We need better urban and rural leadership at the city and district level. Younger talent will prove itself at these levels, and then seek to grow in wider pastures. The duopoly of dynasties and gerontocracy will be under threat from such bright political leaders with experience. Citizens will benefit with better political leadership focusing on service delivery at the cutting edge level. India will get younger chief ministers and prime ministers.

If not, and if rotational reservations are such a good idea, why not apply it to MPs and MLAs too and remove the difference between Khaas Netas and Aam Netas? Perhaps Parliament and State Legislatures would not change the current structure. Do we need an S R Bommai kind of judgment under the Right to Equality on this issue? Else, we shall continue having "politicians of a lesser God" in cities and panchayats, and oldies and dynasts ruling in Indian politics.

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The writer has worked 16 years in the IAS and 13 years in the private sector.

Green plan for highways: 1% project cost to be set aside to plant trees

Green plan for highways: 1% project cost to be set aside to plant trees -The road ministry has finalised a “green highways” policy to “tree-line” 140,000 kilometres of national highways. Under this policy, one per cent of the civil cost of national highway development projects will have to be set aside for the planting of trees in a planned manner, covering both existing NH sections and new routes that would be added to the network. The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) has formulated the new Green Highways (Plantation and Maintenance) Policy, 2015 after a series of reviews, which raised concerns about the poor quality and lack of maintenance of green cover along most national highways. Speaking to The Sunday Express, Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Nitin Gadkari said: “The glare from the headlights of incoming vehicles and the effect of winds, one of the reasons for accidents, could be reduced if there was adequate attention to developing the national highways in an eco-friendly manner. We have therefore decided to tree-line the 97,000 km of existing national highways and around 40,000 km of new roads that we would be adding to the network over the next few years.” He said the initiative sought to take forward the NDA government’s flagship Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and is expected to generate employment for about five lakh people. According to the norms outlined in the policy, the government will create a pool of 1,000-odd contractors with their own nurseries, who will be entrusted with planting trees, landscaping and laying grass turfs and ornamental shrubs along national highways. The policy aims to provide employment to the local people and will be implemented with the participation of the local communities, farmers, NGOs, private sector players, local self-government bodies and the forest department. “We will put this initiative under the MNREGA scheme. If required, we can give advances to farmers and contractors for purchasing trucks and tractors,” said Gadkari. MoRTH is scheduled to hold a workshop of all stakeholders on August 27 to finalise an action plan. “Planting trees in any particular area will depend on the soil suitability there, besides climate and success stories. Konkan in Maharashtra is famous for Alphonso, we can plant it there. In Chhattisgarh, we can have tamarind. Somewhere in between the road lengths, we can have flowers like roses,” he said. Planting fruit-bearing trees specific to the region can aid revenue generation. Besides, waste products or biomass from trees along the road can be used to make fertilisers — the proceeds from the sale would be divided equally between the contractor and the local panchayat body. Under the plan, the ministry or NHAI will appoint an authorised agency for empanelment of plantation agencies, which will then be allowed to bid for the projects. Projects are expected to be awarded on a turnkey basis, depending on the quantum of plantation for the specific site. The plantation agency will have no right on the land and -cannot undertake any other activity on such land. The agency will have to sign a pact to ensure strict compliance with the technical specifications, species, maintenance schedule, survival, payment terms and conditions and on the legal right of the land as well as the forest produce. Globally, tree-lining of highways has either been entrusted to non-profit government organisations or left to state or provincial governments. In Japan, for instance, the Japan Highway Public Corporation, a non-profit government organisation managing the construction and operation of inter-city expressways and toll roads, is entrusted with the task of coordinating tree-lining as well as recycling of plant waste generated from pruning and mowing activities. In Romania, the Romanian National Forestry Company Romsilva started work two years ago on a curtain forest cover along an 11-km A2 highway segment, which connects Romania’s capital Bucharest to the Black Sea port of Constanta and is among the most exposed roads to winter blizzards. In the US state of Maryland, Harford County administration took up a two-year, $1.6 million project involving the planting of about 22,000 trees since early last year, including along highways, to improve the green cover and also the local water quality. A variety of deciduous and evergreen species were planted during the spring of 2014, and the project is scheduled to continue through the spring of 2016. 140,000 km to be lined with trees # Trees to line 140,000 km of national highways # 1% of NH project cost to be set aside for planting trees # To plant fruit-bearing trees specific to region, for instance Alphonso in Konkan, tamarind in Chhattisgarh # To provide local employment, to be included under the rural jobs guarantee scheme - 

Mann ki Baat': PM Modi to launch cashless treatment scheme for accident victims -

Mann ki Baat': PM Modi to launch cashless treatment scheme for accident victims -
Concerned over the high rate of casualties in accidents, the government will soon bring a Road Transport and Safety Bill and launch cashless treatment for mishap victims, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today in his monthly radio programme while avoiding any mention of politics or the logjam in Parliament. In his 15-minute programme, he also hailed the armed forces in the context of Kargil Vijay Divas, paid tributes to the farming community and praised scientists, besides saying that a team of officials will pay a week-long visit to the Northeastern states to understand the problems of the region and address them. He also invited suggestions from the public which could form part of his this year’s Independence Day speech. While talking about various social issues, he avoided politics at a time when Parliament is unable to function because of a deadlock with opposition demanding resignation of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan over various controversies. Talking about road accidents, he mentioned the case of a scooter rider lying bleeding on a road in Delhi with nobody helping him. “Several people have been writing to me that I should speak on road safety to create awareness about it. When we see the figures, we notice that in India, an accident takes place every minute and a death due to these takes place every four minutes. Among the victims, one-third are in the age group of 15-25 years,” the Prime Minister noted. Keeping this in mind, the government will soon bring a Road Transport and Safety Bill, he said. The government is also planning other important measures like putting in place a National Road Safety Policy and Road Safety Action Plan, he said. A project under which cashless treatment will be given to accident victims, wherein the victim does not have to worry for the first 50 hours as to who pays the money for treatment, will also be launched soon, he said. The project will be launched in Gurgaon, Jaipur and Vadodara and then to Mumbai, Ranchi, Rungaon and Maurya national highways 

Prime Minister Launches Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana in Patna

Prime Minister Launches Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana in Patna

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today launched various development projects at Patna. He launched the Deendayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana; inaugurated the Daniawan-Bihar Sharif new railway line; flagged off the Rajgir-Bihar Sharif-Daniawan-Fatuha passenger train and Patna-Mumbai AC Suvidha Express; dedicated to the nation the permanent IIT Campus at Patna; launched and laid the foundation stone for Incubation Centre for Medical Electronics, Patna; and inaugurated the construction of the first phase of the Jagdishpur-Haldia pipeline project.



The Prime Minister said development is the panacea for all problems related to poverty and unemployment. He expressed satisfaction that there is now a general agreement on this aspect, and states are even becoming competitive with regard to development. He said India will progress only through the development of the States, and for this the Centre and States have to work together.


Emphasizing the importance of infrastructure, the Prime Minister said the gas pipeline and rail projects which were launched today would provide development and improve the quality of life of the people in the State. He said that if India has to progress, then the development of Eastern India is essential. He also mentioned several road projects that have been approved for Bihar by the Union Government.

The Prime Minister said that IIT Patna, whose new campus was inaugurated today, should also cater to the State's development needs. He expressed hope that the Incubation Centre for medical devices launched at the IIT, would help manufacture medical devices in India to make them easily accessible for all.

The Governor of Bihar Shri Keshri Nath Tripathi, the Chief Minister of Bihar Shri Nitish Kumar, Union Ministers Shri Suresh Prabhu, Shri Ram Vilas Paswan, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Shri Piyush Goyal, Shri Upendra Kushwaha and Shri Ram Kripal Yadav were present on the occasion.

               DeenDayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY)- An Over view :

1.      Background:

·        The rural agricultural and non-Agriculture consumers (domestic and non-domestic load) of the country are generally serviced through the local distribution network. Many rural areas of the country face insufficient electricity supply, consequently the distribution utilities are forced to resort to load shedding, thus affecting the power supply to both Agriculture and non-Agriculture consumers.

·        The demand of power in rural areas is increasing day by day due to changing consumer base, improving living standards for which augmentation of rural infrastructure needs to be regularly undertaken

·        The investment in the distribution network is low due to bad financial health of the distribution companies. Therefore in order to augment the reliability and quality of supply distribution network needs to be strengthened.

·        To improve the commercial viability of power distribution, there is need for metering of all categories of the consumers



2.      DeenDayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY)

Keeping in view the above problems, Ministry of Power, Government of India has launched Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana for rural areas having following objectives:

i)        To provide electrification to all villages

ii)       Feeder separation to ensure sufficient power to farmers and regular supply to other consumers

iii)     Improvement of Sub-transmission and distribution network to improve the quality and reliability of the supply

iv)     Metering to reduce the losses



3.      Financial provisions:

·        Scheme has an outlay of Rs 76000 crore for implementation of the projects under which Government of India shall provide Grant of Rs 63000 crore.

·        A total of Rs 14680 crore worth projects have already been approved out of which projects amounting to Rs 5827 crore have been approved for Bihar state.



4.      Benefits from the scheme

·        All villages and households shall be electrified

·        Increase in agriculture yield

·        Business of Small and household enterprises shall grow resulting into new avenues for employment

·        Improvement in Health, Education, Banking (ATM) services

·        Improvement in accessibility to radio, telephone, television, internet and mobile etc

·        Betterment in social security due to availability of electricity

·        Accessibility of electricity to schools, panchayats, hospitals and police stations etc

·        Rural areas shall get increased opportunities for comprehensive development

Under this scheme, an Agriculture intensive state like Bihar shall benefit from works of feeder separation. Thousands of kilometres of new lines shall be laid and hundreds of new substations have been planned. The implementation of this scheme shall ensure the improvement in agricultural productivity and electrification of all the households.