Ranchi: If energy consumption patterns are any indicator of development, the tribal households in Jharkhand have been worst impacted during the Covid-induced lockdown and job losses.
According to a study conducted by the School of Advanced International Studies (KNOW), John Hopkins University titled “Energy in Rural Jharkhand” carried out under the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP), it was noticed that despite increase in penetration of grid electricity, the number of tribal households depending on grid power reduced from 87% to 74% whereas those depending upon kerosene, as primary source of lighting, increased from 11% to 21% in the state.
The study across ISEP surveyed a total of 1,440 rural households in all 24 districts of Jharkhand between July and August 2019. Further, a follow-up round was conducted in July 2021. The report prepared thereafter attempts to study the progress — or lack thereof — on energy access parameters in the state over the course of two years, and in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. In each district, the team randomly sampled six villages, with larger villages having a higher probability of being selected. Within each village, 10 households were selected on a random basis for responding to the questionnaire.
The findings of the study were released on Wednesday after conducting a webinar titled “Energy access in rural Jharkhand”. Release of the report marked the conclusion of two-yearlong research initiative aimed at suggesting policy measures for access to cleaner, affordable and sustainable energy to the masses.
The survey found that 87% of households have access to electricity (from grid, micro-grid or solar home systems). However, 24% preferred to use kerosene as their primary lighting fuel. Further, about 34% of the respondents were dissatisfied with grid electricity. One of the main reasons for these responses was unreliable and poor-quality electricity supply — the average household only had access to about 10 hours of service per day, thus forcing them to rely on alternative energy sources.
The report points out access to electricity for tribals increased from 82% to 86%. Of them, 80% of tribal households use the grid for lighting. “Among electrified tribal households with grid access, the proportion using the grid as their primary source of lighting went down from 87% to 74%, while those using kerosene went up from 11% to 21%. Of all the households that used kerosene lamps as their primary lighting source, the proportion belonging to the Scheduled Tribes community went up from 32% to 47%,” the report highlighted.
Proportion of tribal households with LPG access went up from 40% to 43%, and those who use firewood and chips as primary fuel went down from 89% to 85%. But in terms of using the cleaner fuel, a downhill trend was observed.
“Decreased satisfaction with LPG, with the main barriers to access being cost of connection and refill. Cost was still the main reason for dissatisfaction, followed by the distance to travel to obtain a refill. Despite interest to get LPG, cost of connection and the monthly expense of LPG refills discouraged people from relying on it,” the report pointed.
According to a study conducted by the School of Advanced International Studies (KNOW), John Hopkins University titled “Energy in Rural Jharkhand” carried out under the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP), it was noticed that despite increase in penetration of grid electricity, the number of tribal households depending on grid power reduced from 87% to 74% whereas those depending upon kerosene, as primary source of lighting, increased from 11% to 21% in the state.
The study across ISEP surveyed a total of 1,440 rural households in all 24 districts of Jharkhand between July and August 2019. Further, a follow-up round was conducted in July 2021. The report prepared thereafter attempts to study the progress — or lack thereof — on energy access parameters in the state over the course of two years, and in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. In each district, the team randomly sampled six villages, with larger villages having a higher probability of being selected. Within each village, 10 households were selected on a random basis for responding to the questionnaire.
The findings of the study were released on Wednesday after conducting a webinar titled “Energy access in rural Jharkhand”. Release of the report marked the conclusion of two-yearlong research initiative aimed at suggesting policy measures for access to cleaner, affordable and sustainable energy to the masses.
The survey found that 87% of households have access to electricity (from grid, micro-grid or solar home systems). However, 24% preferred to use kerosene as their primary lighting fuel. Further, about 34% of the respondents were dissatisfied with grid electricity. One of the main reasons for these responses was unreliable and poor-quality electricity supply — the average household only had access to about 10 hours of service per day, thus forcing them to rely on alternative energy sources.
The report points out access to electricity for tribals increased from 82% to 86%. Of them, 80% of tribal households use the grid for lighting. “Among electrified tribal households with grid access, the proportion using the grid as their primary source of lighting went down from 87% to 74%, while those using kerosene went up from 11% to 21%. Of all the households that used kerosene lamps as their primary lighting source, the proportion belonging to the Scheduled Tribes community went up from 32% to 47%,” the report highlighted.
Proportion of tribal households with LPG access went up from 40% to 43%, and those who use firewood and chips as primary fuel went down from 89% to 85%. But in terms of using the cleaner fuel, a downhill trend was observed.
“Decreased satisfaction with LPG, with the main barriers to access being cost of connection and refill. Cost was still the main reason for dissatisfaction, followed by the distance to travel to obtain a refill. Despite interest to get LPG, cost of connection and the monthly expense of LPG refills discouraged people from relying on it,” the report pointed.
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