Spatial vulnerability of energy poverty among the households in Odisha

Energy poverty, generally defined by the dependence on traditional solid fuels or lack of access to modern energy sources, continues to be a major hurdle in Odisha. This deficiency impedes progress towards SDG7 and has cascading negative effects on other SDGs. Various policy initiatives have endeavoured to expand access to modern energy services but accurate identification of energy-deprived households remains a persistent obstacle. To address this critical gap, the present research employs a multidimensional approach to gauge energy poverty in Odisha. By leveraging a combination of household survey data and geospatial techniques, this framework captures the nuanced realities of energy poverty at the household level. This comprehensive data collection culminates in the construction of a robust energy poverty index. Principal component analysis extracted underlying factors from collected data, with the resulting vector determining the principal components. Subsequently, energy poverty scores were computed for each household by taking a weighted sum of the principal components, where the weight is derived from the variance. Finally, district-level energy poverty indices are calculated by averaging the scores of resident households. This comprehensive analysis unveils a stark disparity in energy poverty between rural and urban areas of Odisha. Furthermore, it sheds light on concerning regional variations, highlighting the challenging situations faced by hilly northern districts and tribal-dominated southern districts. The insights gleaned from this in-depth analysis are intended to equip policymakers and stakeholders with valuable knowledge to formulate targeted interventions, which can bridge the energy deprivation gap and achieve equitable and affordable energy access for all.