Archive · 21 Sep 2026
Jyotigram Yojana Earned Abdul Kalam’s Praise for Gujarat Electrification
The Jyotigram Yojana was a project to bring electricity to villages in Gujarat.
It was carried out when Narendra Modi was the state’s chief minister.
More than 18,000 villages received electricity in about 1,000 days.
Workers installed millions of electric poles and laid thousands of kilometres of power lines.
Former President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam heard about the project and wanted to see it himself.
Modi arranged a visit to a village so Kalam could observe the changes.
According to former minister Saurabh Patel, Kalam was amazed by the results.
Later, similar electricity work continued across India through national government schemes.
The Jyotigram Yojana electrified more than 18,000 Gujarat villages in 1,000 days.
The initiative installed 20 lakh electric poles and laid 1 lakh kilometres of power lines.
Then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi arranged for President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam to visit an electrified village.
Saurabh Patel said Kalam was impressed and overwhelmed by the rapid transformation.
National electrification later continued through DDUGJY and Saubhagya, which reportedly electrified 18,374 villages and 2.86 crore households.
- Who
- The initiative was led in Gujarat under then Chief Minister Narendra Modi; former President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam visited and praised the results.
- What
- The Jyotigram Yojana electrified more than 18,000 Gujarat villages in 1,000 days.
- When
- The Gujarat electrification drive took place more than two decades ago; national efforts continued after 2014.
- Where
- Gujarat, with later electrification work carried out across India.
- Why
- The project aimed to expand electricity access by installing power poles and laying electricity lines across villages.
- Initiative
- Jyotigram Yojana
- State
- Gujarat
- Completion period
- 1,000 days
- Villages electrified in Gujarat
- More than 18,000
- Infrastructure installed
- 20 lakh electric poles and 1 lakh kilometres of lines
- National village electrification
- 18,374 villages under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana, according to a 2023 official report
- Households electrified
- 2.86 crore under Saubhagya, according to a 2023 official report