This year’s Diwali celebrations will be very special for the 125 families of Kunao village in Uttarakhand’s Pauri district.
They have electricity now, even if it has come 66 years after Independence. The best part of the Kunao story is that the electricity victory was scripted entirely by its residents whose efforts have also included a hunger strike.It was only last month that the Uttarakhand government issued a notification removing the village from the Rajaji National Park.
The village, located on the border between the districts of Dehradun and Pauri, has now entered the modern age. Residents are busy getting their electricity connections and homes wired. Distribution of connections started last week, and about 50 households had taken a connection by Friday evening.