Bhubaneswar, Dec. 21 -- The world may be stepping into an era of 6G technology, but parts of Odisha still remain trapped in darkness. Irony, residents in as many as 139 villages continue to live without electricity, relying on lanterns and oil lamps after sunset.

What makes the situation more alarming is that these villages are not located in some far-off corner of the country, but within the State's Swabhiman Anchal (formerly cut-off area) in Malkangiri district. Despite repeated promises of development and basic infrastructure, electricity has failed to reach these remote habitations.

A maximum number of around 67 villages in Chitrakonda block are under darkness.

For the villagers, darkness defines their daily life-impacting their ed...