Hope on Waghe for bailing Taja Hapa out of darkness

SHONAAM TABRI DADA

ITANAGAR, Sep 04:

The people of Taja Hapa Circle of Pakke-Kessang district have resented the apathy of the State government and a former minister from the constituency for turning a blind eye towards development of the area.

The circle has been facing acute shortage of electricity for decades now. This has led to poor or no mobile and internet connectivity.

On October 17 last year, Power Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla said the rural electrification programme launched by Prime Minister countrywide was being aggressively taken up in the State to meet the completion target of December 2018.

Informing about the status of Deen Dayal Upadhaya Gram Jyoti Yojna (DDUGJY) in the State, he said that 895 un-electrified villages in the off-grid areas were yet to be electrified, which was being taken up by Rural Electrification Cooperation (REC).

This is not visible on the ground, and people have blamed the State government – specifically past representatives of the constituency – for it.

Tasang Techi, the Head Gaon Burah (HGB) of Taja Hapa for the past 37 years, said the area has not had electricity for a decade now. “I have many a time taken up the issue with the district’s deputy commissioner and the Power Department only to be ignored,” he said.

Though the Arunachal Pradesh Energy Development Agency (APEDA) has provided solar lamps to the people, they do not cater to the needs of the people.

Villagers said some of the poles provided for electric wires have decayed, some washed away by floods and a few stolen.

Electricity is not the only basic amenity that Taja Hapa lacks. The schools are in a pathetic condition, some having been shifted due to flood, and officers in the circle often play truant.

Payo Tallang, the headmaster in-charge of the Government Primary School at Rilloh said that smart classrooms are a distant dream for people of the area. “When the government is emphasising on digitalisation, the circle lacks electrification and mobile connectivity. How can there be digitalisation without power?” he asked.

Such is the situation that on cloudy days, classes have to be held in the open as the classrooms become too dark to use.

Present local MLA Biyuram Waghe said he was wary about the conditions in his constituency and had apprised the Assembly of the need for electricity. Of the five circles in Pakke-Kessang district, Taja Hapa and Pijjeriang have no electricity.

“There is no dissemination of information in these areas due to weak communication system,” he said.

Taja Hapa resident Niya Tok said he was hopeful about Waghe doing what his predecessors could not – bring sustained electricity to the circle.