The Union Minister of Power and New & Renewable Energy, R.K. Singh, announced that the Ministry of Power (MoP) had invested ₹110 billion (~$ 1.5 billion) for electrification in Bihar in the past 3-4 years.

These included substations, transmission, and rural electrification projects. The minister inaugurated two community centers built by NTPC Limited in the proximity of NTPC Barh at Sahari and Sahnaura. He also initiated a 3-kilometer long Meh-Indrapuri barrage road at Nabiangar, Aurangabad, and the main gate complex of Kanti Bijlee Utpadan Nigam Limited in Bihar. According to the press release, NTPC Barh built two community buildings for ₹6.2 million (~$ 84,552) as a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project to support 13,500 villagers of neighboring villages.

“Today, electricity is not a luxury but a necessity. Even healthcare treatment is highly dependent on electricity. We are proud to learn that Bihar will soon be generating 10 GW of electricity,” said Sushil Kumar Singh, Member of Parliament, Aurangabad.

“Out of NTPC’s total installed capacity of 62.9 GW, it presently has 6.15 GW in Bihar. In addition, 3.8 GW capacity is in the pipeline. We are also committed to undertake various corporate social responsibility initiatives for the development of Bihar,” said Gurdeep Singh, Chairman and Managing Director of NTPC Limited.

Bihar is one of the least developed states for solar, with only 111 MW of solar projects currently in operation, according to Mercom India’s Solar Project Tracker.

The state has approved the request of the Bihar State Power Holding Company Limited (BSPHCL) to carry forward the shortfall in its renewable purchase obligation (RPO) for the financial year 2019-20 to FY 2020-21. The state commission said that the power company could purchase either solar power or solar renewable energy certificates to fulfill the RPO shortfall for FY 2019-20.