the solar lights project

THE SOLAR LIGHTS PROJECTFor off-grid villages in India

PROJECT COORDINATOR:Hari LambaCHIEF OF OPERATIONS: Jiwan SondhiIDCA PresidentPrakasam TataIDCA/IDS/ROTARY2009

THE SOLAR LIGHTS PROJECTBackground

This project is part of our effort to help villages develop affordable access to renewable energy. The Solar Lights Project is the beginning of that effort.

In order to succeed, this project needs your financial and moral support. To see how you can help, please see the information at the end.

Solar Lightsto Replace Kerosene Lantern

Rural green energy for livelihood

Alternative Energy shows the way

Solar-Wind-Biomass Gasifiers

Village Development Projects

Begin with Solar Lights

Rural green energy for livelihood

Below Poverty Level (BPL) and Tribal poor people earning $1 to $3 per day spending $3 To $5 Per month for Kerosene fuel , can afford Solar Lantern $2 to $ 5 on Service Charges Per Month

Solar Battery Charging Station Entrepreneur/Women’s Self Help Group (SHG) will collect Fee for service charges.

Training, Maintenance & Parts Support

Such support is crucial if villagers are to embrace the activity more enthusiastically

Villagers need to know that problems malfunctions of equipment will be quickly resolved.

So Training of DRI personnel and Village Women’s SHG is important

Spare parts should be available at both locations Later, people near DRI or villagers should be able

to earn employment assembling Solar Lights from components, and testing after assembly

Example of a Solar Lights Assembly Training CenterTraining, maintenance & spare parts support is

needed

SOLAR BATTERY CHARGINGSTATION

SOLAR LIGHTFOR SILK WORM FARMING

SCHOOL AT NIGHTUNDER SOLAR LANTERN LIGHT

EXAMPLE - SABZIWALLAH

VEGETABLE VENDOR SELLING LATE EVENING

Although not part of this Project, some Villagers who can afford will buy Solar Light Systems

Farmers with Banker's Kisan Card can afford to purchase with down payment and installment payments for solar Home Light systems costing $200 - $1000 for Solar Light- Fan – TV facilities

Villages facing Power shortage can buy standby Solar Home light systems.

Again, maintenance & spare part support is needed with Finance at door in villages

SELF-RELIANT CENTRE, PACHEETA VILLAGE INCLUSTER OF FIVE VILLAGES

HUT OF EDUCATED VOLUNTEER RESIDENT COUPLE, PACHEETA VILLAGE

(April, 2009)

SOLAR PANEL & BATTERY BOXInstalled for hut in 2008 by Mr. Sondhi

Pacheeta, Badbada and Digri villages are off-grid In Tagi, 15 of 71 houses are electrified Barhat is completely electrified Total of 258 houses, and population of 1,423 Many of the households cannot even afford Kerosene Some are willing to purchase solar lights with micro-finance Head of village government (Sarpanch/ Pradhan), wanted to see

some larger scale electricity generation Educated couple was resident in village cluster .

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CONDITIONS AT 5 VILLAGE CLUSTER

MOKAMGARH VILLAGE – 2 KM FROM DRI(Kerosene Wick Lamps & lanterns)

Kerosene home made wick lamp

Another wick lamp and regular lantern

MOKAMGARH VILLAGE – 2 KM FROM DRI(Kerosene Wick Lamps & lanterns – April, 2009)

User of Kerosene home made wick lamp

Hari Lamba with Villagers & Sarpanch

Kerosene is heavily subsidized– Still, reports indicate that some cannot even afford that

Kerosene lamps cause indoor air pollution– Causes of respiratory problems – especially for kids

Kerosene lamps are a fire hazard– Especially open wick lamps

The average kerosene lamp emits about 1/3 metric ton of carbon dioxide per year

Although beneficial to all villagers, the strategy needs to make Solar Lights affordable to the poorest of villagers – lowest income groups.

PHYSICAL, SOCIAL & ECONOMIC CONDITIONSIN PROJECT AREA

How a Solar Light Works

SolarPanel

ChargingCircuit

Sealed Lead AcidMaintenance Free

Battery

LED Light

AISHWARYA SUN-KIRAN 360 SOLAR LANTERN WITH 3W SOLAR PANEL

GSBF – SOLAR LED HOME LIGHT SYSTEMS WITH SOLAR 10W PANEL

THRIVE TECHNOLOGY - ACCENDO - GOOD FOR 60 HOURS LIGHT WITH ONE CHARGE

Noble Energy Solar Technologies Ltd (Sankeerna, Inc) – Hyderabad– Sun Kiran 360 with LED Filament

Thrive, Hyderabad– Accendo

Cosmosignite Innovations, Delhi– Mighty Light

Bhambri Enterprises, Delhi– Sun King

Grameen Surya Bijlee Foundation, Mumbai– GSBF Multi-LED units

Green Light Planet, Inc., Mumbai– Small Lights

Manufacturers Contacted

www.solarnest.net

www.sankeerna.com

www.thrive.in

www.cosmosignite.com

www.bhambrienterprises.com

www.suryabijlee.com

www.greenlightplanet.com

MIGHTY LIGHT – SOLAR LANTERNOUTDOOR SOLAR LANTERN FOR FIELDWORK

MIGHTY LIGHT – SOLAR LANTERN DEMONSTRATION TO WOMEN FOLKS IN VILLAGES

Deendayal Research Institute (DRI), Chitrakoot, Satna District, M.P. We have a working relationship with DRI – Dr. Nandita Pathak was

here in fall 2008 for IDCA Annual Conference. They are active in income generation, agriculture, health and

hygiene, education, and entrepreneurship development. DRI is active in about 200 villages – about 40 clusters of 5 villages

each (one Panchayat), each with a resident volunteer educated couple.

Mr. Jiwan Sondhi has helped establish 18 solar lights and 4 solar street lights at DRI and nearby villages.

Initial support has come from individual donors, IDS, IDCA, and Rotary Club

The Rotary Club at Satna, will also be providing advisory and logistics support

Organizations We Will be Workingwith

Shri. Nana Deshmukhji , Founder DRI , discussing with Jiwan Sondhi

Solar lantern Project Chitrakoot

DR. BHARAT PATHAK SECY. GENERAL & DR. NANDITA PATHAK , DIRECTOR , BACKGROUND - UDMITA VIDYA PEETH COMPLEX, CHITRAKOOT

In each village, a women’s self-help group (after training) will operate a Solar Battery charging station, where they will charge the batteries of solar lights.

Villagers will come and exchange their discharged batteries, or solar light unit, and pick up a charged battery or solar lantern/light.

Each villager will pay a service charge for battery charging service charge that will be not more than what they currently pay for kerosene fuel ( at least for the lowest income group).

Service charges will be used to pay for the livelihood of the women’s self-help group services, Replace the batteries as and when needs replacement, and accumulate a solar project fund at DRI to further expand the activity in other villages.

Will work through DRI, and work with local village panchayat (one per cluster of 5 villages), and the educated couple that is living on a volunteer basis in the village cluster.

Proposed Strategy

The project is intended as a demonstration project for solar lights This will be used to approach other sources of funding in future

– Other institutions– Government of India – Rural Development funds

Micro-finance credit from local banks– - If banks can see the results, have funds coming in from women’s self

help groups, and see organizations supporting efforts, then they may be willing to loan funds without collateral

Apply for registration and verification of project for carbon exchange – to obtain those funds

Continued financial support of small donors, for this and other alternative energy projects

Overall Tactical Objectives of Project(At completion of project)

How do we evaluate success ? Number of kerosene lanterns replaced Number of people gaining employment Survey by volunteer educated resident couple

– Effect on education of kids, their health, safety benefits (fire hazard aspect), benefit to after dark productive activities, benefit to field work –mornings and evenings, local school activities, community meetings, etc.

Criteria for Evaluation

Mr.Sondhi and Mr. Lamba to review info received from manufacturers

Decide which product/products to try for project DRI to order items as advised by Sondhiji Mr.Sondhi tentatively plans to visit in September or October,

2009 Rotary Clubs of Satna and Naperville to provide logistics and

advisory support Mr.Sondhi to make final selection of village (s) where to initially

implement project Reports will be provided regularly to show how money is being

spent and the achievements of the project.

SOLAR LIGHTS PROJECTNext Steps

ATTENDEES – JAN. 31, 2009 IDCA FUNDRAISER FOR PROJECT AT OAKBROOK, ILLINOIS

Candle doesn’t loose its own light by lighting another candle.

Your contribution of $25 can educate a child with Solar Lantern $50 can light poor man”s hut with solar lantern $100 can light 2 solar lights in household $ 5000 can adopt a off grid village for solar light $15000 can provide 10KW Gasifier Electricitygeneration from Agro- waste for livelihood by micro-

enterprises in off grid villages.

Thanks to IDS for Initial Grant

The India Development Service, based in Chicago, has very graciously provided a grant for $ 3,000 to start an activity in one village.

However, we still need your support to extend the activity to another cluster of five villages (one panchayat)

HOW YOU CAN HELP

The Project urgently needs your support

You can help by spreading the word about the project

You can help by making tax-deductible donations:– Payable to IDCA (India Development Coalition of America)

– In comments section: “For the Solar Lights Project”

– www.idc-america.org

Mail your donations to either:– IDCA, 1213 Stonebriar Ct., Naperville, IL 60540

prakasamtata@sbcglobal.net

– Or to H.S. Lamba, 6921 Creekside Rd., Downers Grove, IL 60516 hlamba@sbcglobal.net

– Or Mr. J.P. Sondhi, 29325 Kennedy Ct., Farmington Hills, MI 48331 jpsondhi@yahoo.com

SUMMARY

Initial Budget will help provide the Seed money to help get the project established

Initial grant from IDS is helping us get started.

The project provides multiple benefits (including employment and economics), leading to a better quality of life for the villagers

It will bring the benefits of high technology to villagers, who have benefited from it the least

It also provides overall environmental benefits – reduced indoor air pollution, reduced carbon emissions (1/3 metric ton per year on average)

It will enable us to approach other sources of funding in the future.

We will provide photos, write-ups, and progress reports– Hari Lamba has prime responsibility for this, with the

support of Mr. Sondhi and DRI. Mr. Sondhi can spend more time at solar project as per

requirement . DRI should accept interns and visitors, based on advance

communications, arrangements and rules that they may have in place.

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