Patna: Rehal village on the Kaimur plateau in Maoist-infested Rohtas district is being developed as a "carbon negative village", the first of its kind in Bihar.
Rehal, which is located 1700-ft above sea level, is considered a hotbed of Naxalites, who had killed then forest divisional officer of Rohtas, Sanjay Singh, in 2002.
Rohtas district magistrate Animesh Kumar Parashar said on Friday that the district administration would provide basic facilities like drinking water, sanitation, electricity etc through eco-friendly technology at a cost of Rs 7 crore.
In addition, the state government has sanctioned Rs 28 crore for construction of a road from Akabarpur to Barkatta through Rehal. "The idea is to develop the village atop hills on the pattern of the Himalayan nation of Bhutan, the only country in the globe which is carbon negative," he told reporters in Rohtas.
A carbon negative village is that which produces more oxygen than it consumes. "At present, all the basic facilities such as primary health centre, bank, mobile tower and water and electricity are lit by solar power," the district magistrate said.
The government's initiative has brought cheers on the faces of the residents, who have got electricity and water connection in their houses for the first time since Independence. All the 135-odd homes have already been provided basic amenities, a government official said.
A 10KVA solar power plant has already been made operational. Dehri-sub-divisional officer Pankaj Patel said 10KVA and 25KVA solar energy plants at the village are under construction.
The green power being supplied is enough to light up three bulbs and run a fan at a time, he said.
Earlier, chief minister Nitish Kumar was scheduled to inaugurate the solar energy plant and other facilities at the village on January 13. The programme was deferred to January 22. However, it could not materialise due to bad weather condition.
Shyam Narayan Oraon, the mukhiya of Pipradih panchayat under whose jurisdiction Rehal village falls, said the residents were delighted over the district authorities' initiative to provide basic facilities to the residents.
