Bihar records the fastest growth in per capita availability of power over a decade

The country's per capita availability of power has grown at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of less than five per cent between 2005/06 & 2015/16. In absolute terms, the per capita availability has grown 338.6 kilowatt-hours during this period.

There are altogether 16 states that have seen the per capita availability of power growing at a 10-year CAGR above the all India growth of 4.8 per cent.

Going by this yardstick, Bihar tops the charts with a growth of 10.2 per cent over a decade. The states' per capital availability of power rose to 228.8 kilowatt-hours in 2015/16 from just 87 kilowatt-hours in 2005/06.

The next to follow were Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand with at 10-year CAGR of 8.6 per cent and 7.8 per cent, respectively. States like Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan managed a growth rate of around 6 per cent over the period.

Only four states, namely Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Goa managed to double their per capita availability of power over a decade.

Leading states; in kilowatt-hours

More than a dozen states have registered a growth below the country's overall growth in per capita availability of power. States like Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra saw a growth of 4 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively between 2005/06 & 2015/16.

Delhi saw per capita availability of power growing to 1765.8 kilowatt-hours in 2015/16 from 1536.5 kilowatt-hours in 2005/6, translating into a paltry growth of 1.4 per cent. Chandigarh saw the least growth of 0.9 per cent during the period.