As developing countries climb the ladder of economic and social development, providing electricity to their poorest citizens becomes a social imperative, but the distribution of electricity in poverty-stricken regions is frequently more complex than simply installing electrical towers. This study focuses on rural electrification in India; how politics interacts with technical and economic factors in the design and implementation of the government's electrification schemes. It finds that entrenched political interests, developed during Britain's colonial era and cultivated in the years since independence, have historically been more interested in rent-seeking and treating electricity as a political favor than in developing electrical infrastructure. India's unique legacy of colonial, distributive, and bureaucratic politics have resulted in a patronage-oriented political economy that affects the relationship between citizens and would-be electrical providers and also has direct impacts on investment and development in the electricity sector.This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.I. The Political Economy of Rural Electrification in India: An Overview * A. Major Research Question and Findings * B. Significance of the Research Question * C. Literature Review * D. Argument and Study Organization * II. The Technical Dimensions of Rural Electrification in Developing Countries * A. Grid Scheme * B. Non-Grid Scheme * C. South Africa's Electrification Experience: A Comparative Base Line * D. Conclusion * III. The Distributive Politics of Electrification in India * A. Colonialism and Independence * B. Post-Independence Distributive Politics * C. The Evolution of Electrification Programs in India * 1. Kutir Jyothi Program (KYP) * 2. Rural Electricity Supply Technology Mission and the Electricity Act * 3. Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) * 4. Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) * 5. Conclusion * IV. Conclusions and Implications * A. Barriers to Electrification * B. Key FindingsWhat explains the patterns of rural electrification in India? This study examines the politics of rural electrification in India, including an assessment of the extent to which corruption and colonial roots played a role, in order to provide the context surrounding the technological/engineering, political, and economic factors that determine how and where electrification is implemented. It finds that entrenched political interests, developed during Britain's colonial era and cultivated in the years since independence, have historically been more interested in rent-seeking and treating electricity as a political favor than in developing electrical infrastructure. India's unique legacy of colonial, distributive, and bureaucratic politics have resulted in a patronage-oriented political economy that affects the relationship between citizens and would-be electricity providers and also has direct impacts on investment and development in the electricity sector.

Discourses by an Indian religious leader.