New research, however, suggests that Indian rural households are actually willing to pay for electricity—as long as it is of reliable quality. To understand the relationship between the quality of electricity service and willingness to pay, they use 2014-2015 ACCESS survey data from 8,500 rural households in 74 villages across six states. The ACCESS survey is a large-scale survey on energy access in rural India which includes specific questions on households’ willingness to pay for electricity. The authors argue that since much of India’s rural electricity problems stem from discoms’ poor financial health, better quality of supply can trigger a ‘virtuous cycle’ for improved electricity access. Also read: Quality of Service Predicts Willingness to Pay for Household Electricity Connections in Rural IndiaSnap Fact features new and interesting reads from the world of research

Source: Mint May 15, 2019 11:31 UTC