The Gujarat government reversed its stance on the contentious issue. Gujarat farmers protested the provision of daytime electricity throughout the state during the Gujarat assembly elections in 2022. The Bhartiya Kisan Sangh, an RSS wing, also protested the government on this issue. The government promised farmers at the time that they would have access to electricity even during the day by the end of 2022.
But here comes a twist the government has reversed course on the issue, stating that farmers will be able to use electricity during the day after two years.
Energy Minister Kanubhai Desai stated in response to a question in the Gujarat Assembly that all farmers in the state will have access to electricity during the day within the next two years.
"To that end, the state government is determined to divide existing feeders and provide sufficient power supply through new feeders," he added.
"The Energy Minister said in the Assembly that the Kisan Suryodaya scheme will take two more years to provide electricity to the farmers during the day," Pal Ambalia, president of the Congress Party's Kisan Cell, said. "The question is now how to trust the government, because earlier former chief minister said that every farmer will get electricity by December 2022 and now the energy minister said that every farmer will get electricity after two years."
The Gujarat government launched the Kisan Suryodaya Yojana to provide farmers with daytime electricity. The programme was implemented in 2020-21 for 19.25 lakh farmers in Gujarat who had farm electricity connections; the first phase included 1055 villages in Dahod, Junagadh, and Gir Somnath Districts, while the second phase included 3927 villages.
On August 5, 2021, then-Chief Minister Vijay Rupani announced that all farmers in Gujarat would have access to electricity during the day by the end of 2022. However, until the 2022 elections, most Gujarat farmers did not have access to electricity. Farmers across Gujarat, particularly in North Gujarat, staged daytime electricity protests, which were supported by the RSS-affiliated Bharatiya Kisan Sangh.
