So if everything goes as planned, 10 districts of Karnali Province will get electrified in a matter of two years. Kudos to the NEA for outlining this ambitious project, despite abundant risks and challenges attached to. Karnali abounds in hard-to-reach places. Even harder is to take development projects there. For all the odds, the province is making strides, albeit slowly – to the delight of so many countrymen, at home and abroad. Whether in transportation, education, health and, now in electrification, Karnali, arguably, is making headways in multiple directions. Just like the opening of the Karnali Highway over a decade ago opened the path to prosperity, the about-to-start project is set to widen the path, accelerating the development. It would not be an overstatement to say electrification is a bare minimum requirement for the overall development of a nation. For one, it is electricity that powers each necessity we need to sustain life or every luxury we crave for.

Second, generation of electricity is synonymous with development and prosperity. The more we generate, the more prosperous we become, provided that the produced electricity is either consumed domestically or exported. Such is its importance that modern life cannot be imagined without electricity. The country has witnessed steady rise in generation of electricity. From the completed 456MW Upper Tamakoshi to rapidly being constructed 900MW Arun III, the country is on track to produce enough, if not surplus, electricity to power our homes, offices and industries. Karnali is one of the least electrified provinces. Only 44.93 per cent of the households there are connected to electricity, according to the NEA. It also lags behind other provinces in terms of Human Development Index (HDI), education, health and other indicators of development

NEA Managing Director Kul Man Ghising says they are expanding the reach of electricity in the province at a loss and that the project is so costly that it doesn’t even cover the cost, let alone make profit. He adds that since it is the state’s responsibility to supply electricity to all households regardless of the circumstances, they are striving for that. Ghising’s remarks are in line with the spirit of welfare state as envisaged in the constitution. The government has adopted the people-centric approach to pursue development initiative. In aiming for the expansion, the NEA has paved the way for win-win situation: As more people consume electricity, it will only see growth in its revenue. As long as there are consumers, demand for electricity will always be there. The NEA should think that today’s loss could easily be translated into future gain. It has done a commendable job of aiming to tap the untapped market.

Despite being an economic backwater, Karnali is the cradle of Nepali language, civilisation and culture. No doubt, the electrification will prove a game changer and propels the province towards prosperity. This will unlock its huge potentials such as medicinal plants and typical agro products. Once it achieves the desired economic goals, the backward province will come into the limelight, thereby reviving Nepali culture and linguistic heritage. Then, it will no longer be tagged as underdeveloped but be a player in contributing to the national economy.