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Electrification of all villages to be completed by 2007

Our Bureau

KOLKATA, July 1

WORK relating to power sector reforms in different States are progressing well, and electrification of all remaining 85,000 villages in the country would be completed by 2007.

Ms Jayawanti Mehta, Union Minister of State for Power, while reviewing the projects undertaken by the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) here, said the Union Government has decided to increase the country's power generation capacity by one lakh MW by 2012.

She said the financial allocation of Rs 1,000 crore for the Accelerated Power Development Programme (APDP) in the last financial year has been increased to Rs 1,500 crore in the current year, as per the Central Budget. This is prompted by the benefits of the reforms. Metering of all connections, from 11 kv line, would be completed by December 2001, she pointed out.

Emphasising further reforms in the power sector, the Minister said power thefts have already come down, and recovery of dues has increased sharply. She visited the DVC headquarters in connection with the conference on `Implementation of APDP' of Power Se cretaries/Chairman of SEBs, eastern region.