Leisang village is located in the Sadar Hills West Tehsil of Senapati district in Manipur. According to Villageinfo.in, a directory of Indian villages, Leisang has a population of 65 in about 19 houses.
On Sunday, 29 April, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the herculean task of electrifying all Indian villages was completed on 28 April with the electrification of Leisang village.
“28th April 2018 will be remembered as a historic day in the development journey of India,” wrote the PM.
“Yesterday, we fulfilled a commitment due to which the lives of several Indians will be transformed forever! I am delighted that every single village of India now has access to electricity,” he added.
28th April 2018 will be remembered as a historic day in the development journey of India. Yesterday, we fulfilled a commitment due to which the lives of several Indians will be transformed forever! I am delighted that every single village of India now has access to electricity.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 29, 2018
While sharing a news report in a second tweet, the PM wrote that Leisang has now become part of thousands of other villages in India which have been “powered and empowered”.
He also shared photos showing workers carrying the equipment needed to bring electricity to the village over treacherous terrain.
I salute the efforts of all those who worked tirelessly on the ground, including the team of officials, the technical staff and all others, to make this dream of a #PowerfulIndia a reality. Their efforts today will help generations of Indians in the coming years. pic.twitter.com/t8WjZgpNuT
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 29, 2018
While one of the photos shows a worker crossing a tightrope bridge while carrying heavy equipment on his back another shows a group of men carrying a pole on their shoulders as they cross a shallow river.
“I salute the efforts of all those who worked tirelessly on the ground, including the team of officials, the technical staff and all others, to make this dream of a #PowerfulIndia a reality. Their efforts today will help generations of Indians in the coming years,” wrote the PM while sharing the pictures.
In his 2015 Independence Day speech, PM Modi had set a target of 1,000 days for his government for electrification of all villages in India. Subsequently, the government set off to achieve the target under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY).
Union Power minister RK Singh announced that the government achieved the target 12 days before deadline.
“PM @NarendraModi made a promise from the rampart of the Red Fort on 15th Aug 2015, to electrify all unelectrified villages. We have electrified all the villages reported by the states & achieved the milestone 12 days before the deadline. Thank you Prime Minister. #PledgeRedeemed,” wrote Singh on Twitter.
“We congratulate the thousands of officers and staffs of Ministry of Power of Government of India and DISCOMS of the States for achieving this huge milestone of connecting every village in the country well within time and making the PM @narendramodi’s dream a reality,” he added.
We congratulate the thousands of officers and staffs of Ministry of Power of Government of India and DISCOMS of the States for achieving this huge milestone of connecting every village in the country well within time and making the PM @narendramodi’s dream a reality.
— R. K. Singh (@RajKSinghIndia) April 29, 2018
An electrified village does not mean that all the households have electricity. A village is declared electrified if there is basic infrastructure for electricity supply and 10 per cent of the households in the village and public places – including schools, panchayat office and health centre – have electricity.
To ensure that all households in the country have electricity, the government launched Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya) which aims to complete its mission by March 2019.