Energy and its present use
Energy and its present use
Energy demand in rural areas is on a steady rise. India is the fourth largest energy consumer in the world. The present energy use is mostly in the areas of domestic cooking and lighting, agriculture, transport and industrial sectors. India’s energy basket has a mix of all the resources available including renewables. The largest energy source is coal, followed by petroleum and traditional biomass.
According to the 2011 Census, the household-level data indicates that only 55.3 per cent of rural homes used electricity as the primary source for lighting. Energy access, with about one fourth of the population lacking access to electricity and energy security, with the country relying on imports for a considerable amount of its energy use, particularly for crude petroleum are key challenges that the country faces with respect to energy. Wide disparity in energy use pattern between the haves and have-nots, urban and rural and men and women are also a cause of concern.
Present status of energy use in India
In India, of the 121 crore Indians, 83.3 crore live in rural areas while 37.7 crore stay in urban areas. Energy availability, access and affordability are vital if our country is to keep its pace of development. 99.92 % of villages in India are fully electrified. To know the details, click here.
During 2022-23, the per capita electricity consumption in India is 1014.83 kilowatt-hour (Kwh). According to the official data the total installed capacity of the country stood at 4,34,195 MW, as on Feb. 2024. Thermal power plants constitute 56 % of the installed capacity and hydropower about 10.8 %. There are 21 nuclear power reactors in the country with a total installed capacity of 6780 MW.
The peak power deficit was 1.4 % during 2023-24. Active LPG domestic connections (as of Jan. 2024) was 32 crore. According to NSO’s 76th round survey on ‘Drinking Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Housing Condition’, among the households living in houses, about 93.9 percent of the households in the rural areas and about 99.1 percent of the households in the urban areas had electricity for domestic use. Among the households living in houses, about 48.3 percent of the households in the rural areas and about 86.6 percent of the households in the urban areas used LPG as fuel for cooking.
Increased energy conservation, improved energy efficiency and enhanced energy production from renewable sources can definitely lead India in general and rural areas in particular to become self sustainable communities.
Source : Portal content team
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Last Modified : 3/26/2024
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