Gandhinagar: To prevent damage to power lines in coastal districts during natural calamities like storms or cyclones and to ensure a continuous electricity supply to farmers, the work of undergrounding overhead lines in phases is currently in progress. As of December 1, 2024, under the Sagarkhedu Sarvangi Vikas Yojana in Junagadh district, two power feeders covering 16.97 km of power lines have been planned for conversion into underground cables at a cost of more than ₹2.74 crore to secure the power infrastructure and ensure uninterrupted power supply, said Energy Minister Kanubhai Desai while replying to a question raised by an MLA in the Legislative Assembly today.

Providing further details, Energy Minister Desai stated that under the Sagarkhedu Sarvangi Vikas Yojana, ₹4,964.29 lakh has been spent in Junagadh district and ₹1,164.29 lakh in Jamnagar district over the last two years, amounting to a total expenditure of ₹9,256.04 lakh as of December 31, 2024. After Cyclone Biparjoy, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel decided to provide underground electricity lines, new substations, replacement of dilapidated wires, and new electricity connections in coastal districts under the Sagarkhedu Vikas Yojana in the interest of farmers and citizens.

He added that in this region, 236 new substations have been established at a cost of ₹2,534 crore, and approximately 1.30 lakh new farm connections have been provided at a cost of ₹198 crore. The Sagarkhedu Sarvangi Vikas Yojana was first implemented in 2007-08 during the tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. Till December 2024, 73,762 km of dilapidated electricity lines and more than 1.74 lakh poles have been replaced under this scheme at a total cost of ₹1,009 crore. Additionally, 236 new substations have been constructed at a cost of ₹2,534.69 crore, while over 1.32 lakh new agricultural power connections have been provided at a cost of ₹1,998 crore, the Minister added. DeshGujarat