Solar companies seek greater emphasis on innovation in technology, processes and market linkages.
Dayamanagudisalu village in Kolar district is a village of 120 poor Muslim families, 125 kilometres from the technical hub of Bengaluru.
The men work as daily wage labour breaking stones and earning about Rs 5,000 a month.
Though the village is connected to the grid, they get about five hours of electricity a day. Residents of Bengaluru get 24 hour electricity supply.
Three years ago, 100 families went the solar route for their basic lighting needs.
Says Rafique, a resident, "Power cuts used to be a big problem for us. But after installing solar lights, we don't even get to know when there are power cuts."
For installing two solar lights, each family spent Rs 10,500. They were financed by bank loans, arranged by the two companies that sold the lights to them.
They pay monthly instalments against the loan to a bank, but their electricity bills have come down.
Adds Shaukat, a resident, "Our electricity bill used to be about Rs 450, now it is Rs 150. We use solar power only for lighting, not for using appliances like TV."
The solar system comprises a rooftop panel, a battery and a charge regulator. We learn that some of the solar lights are not functioning.
Nyamat faced a problem after four months but could not find a technician to repair them near his village. "The technician came a couple of times in the beginning, put some water in the battery and left. We didn't have any phone number to call the technician. When there are power cuts, my wife has no option but to cook outside using the oil lamp."
For these families, it is a double whammy. The solar story would not be a success in the absence of proper after sales service by service providers.
In Maadamutnalli village, Kolar district, we meet 37-year-old Venkatesh who is a tailor. Since one of his legs is affected by polio, he has to use a motorised sewing machine. But his village receives power for only three to four hours a day.
Unable to keep up with his customer's orders, his earnings were affected.
He was approached by Selco which suggested that his sewing machine could be solar powered at a cost of Rs 18,000. The Solar Electric Light Company or Selco is a social enterprise started by Harish Hande 20 years ago and is one of the oldest companies selling decentralised solar systems in the country.
The company has a non profit arm, the Selco Foundation, which gave him a grant of Rs 3,000. Venkatesh put together Rs 2,000 and got the remaining Rs 13,000 as a loan from a rural bank. Selco helped connect Venkatesh to the bank.
Says Venkatesh, "I am able to earn Rs 500 to Rs 600 a day. Earlier I was earning only Rs 250 a day. I used to pay electricity bill of Rs 150 a month, now I pay just Rs 70 to Rs 80."
Selco is providing regular after sales service. The company believes the usage of solar energy for livelihood applications will grow, helping to reduce poverty.
About 55 km from Bangalore, in Arasanakunte, Ramnagar district, we visit a government high school. There are 136 children, belonging to poor families. Since June this year, under a programme called E-Shaala, a solar powered projector is used to teach the children science, maths and english grammar.
Jagdish AN, science teacher, said, "The graphics and animation come to our help. We find it easier to teach difficult concepts and students find it easier to understand."
250 schools have benefitted from the programme.
Like the midday meal scheme, and the bicycle scheme, this school has a light for education scheme to encourage attendance in school.Started over a year ago, the children are given portable solar power lamps to help them study at home without interruption during power outages. The school has a charging station and students bring the pocket sized batteries to school in the morning for charging. They take them home at the end of the school day.
When they complete class 10, they return the solar lamp to the school. Both programmes are maintained by SELCO and financed through foundations, CSR and the Government. Each of the solar lamp costs 1,700 rs and maintenance of 300 rs is paid by the student for a 4 year period.
25,000 children across the state have benefitted from the project. Lack of energy is a significant barrier to providing quality education
Take for instance, the school's computer lab. Despite having 8 computers, it has been closed down for five years. The batteries and UPS have stopped working because of power cuts
We meet Harshita, who is a keen student, at her home. After she lost her father four months back, her mother became a daily wage labour. Harshita says she often wakes up before sunrise to study since she gets a lot of homework in class 10.
Her older sister, Sandhya, is studying in a junior college.
Sometimes they keep the solar lamp at a higher position, and the light is enough for their mother to cook while they study. The lamp is a prized possession for her family.
Harshita said, "We have to return the lamp to the school. But we have appealed to the school to allow us to keep it as it helps us. During power cuts we have to use kerosene lamps and the smoke affects my eyes. I want to study science which is a lot of hard work. It is very tough for us if there is no electricity."
Harshita's school fees are being paid by a teacher. Education can help the sisters get out of poverty.
Harshita wants to be an IAS officer and her sister Sandhya an engineer. Something as ordinary as light can transform her world.
She said, "My father, who was the pillar of our family, is no more with us. It is a very painful time for me. My father is not there and I need to study too."
Our next stop is 15 km from the heart of Bangalore city. the Kariyammana Agrahara slum is a settlement of over 500 families.
Underserved and practically invisible to their neighbours, a majority work as construction labour and domestic workers. They have no access to water, power, sanitation, and other government services.
Children do not attend school as they have to take care of their siblings and fetch water from nearly a km away.
Households pay Rs 200 a month to the landowner as rent for the use of the land. Kerosene and firewood are their main sources of energy and fuel, even though it comes with the risk of fire and respiratory infections. Families, on an average, pay over Rs 300 a month for kerosene and Rs 50 a month to charge their mobiles.
Each of the single room homes is less than 100 square feet. Made with scraps of plastic and broken pieces of wood, the ceilings are covered with years of soot.
Kumar, who belongs to this community, used to run a small shop in the settlement. He was contacted by Selco to start a solar powered integrated energy centre. Built around his shop, he now has extra space for his new business in energy services. These battery boxes are for charging solar powered lights.
Kumar rents out the battery boxes to families for Rs 50 a week. These work out cheaper than kerosene lamps.
"Since the light is bright, I am able to see if something falls into the food. Children are able to play without any problem. We are able to make out if any pests get into the room," says Uma, mother of a one year old.
Kumar recently invested in a Rs 60,000 solar powered fridge so that he can sell milk, yogurt and chilled water. After paying back his EMIs, he is making a profit.
India has more people living without electricity than any other country. Nearly 300 million people, living in 80 million households, are not connected to the grid. Besides the millions who are connected to the grid but have practically no electricity.
Access to electricity is an indicator of income, inequality and exclusion. Poorer communities are the ones that are energy poor.
In September, 193 countries, including India, committed to ensuring access to affordable and sustainable energy for all. It is goal 7 of the sustainable development goals adopted by the countries. Renewable energies like solar can be a catalyst for ending poverty, and building equity.
The poor can start generating income today. A generation is lost as it waits for the grid to reach them. Renewable energies can also have a solution for global climate change.
D Raghunandan, Director, Centre for Technology and Development, said, "What you are looking for is the low carbon pathway, which simultaneously gives you a more equitable energy access domestically also, it cannot be either or. You cannot say that the India will be the good boy internationally and reduce its carbon footprint, at the cost of not providing electricity to the rural and the poor in my country. You have to say that the India is right now 1/17th or 1/18th of the per capita of the energy consumption, of the average American, that's not acceptable, so the average has to be better. And the average cannot be better by keeping the 40% of the people with the no energy and the people like us leaving in Delhi with lots of Energy."
The energy needs of the rural poor extend beyond lighting. If solar energy is to be the answer, the Government has to promote energy efficient components that will help rural livelihoods. But there is little acknowledgment of this sector.
Ajay Mathur, Director General, Bureau of Energy Efficiency, believes the challenge is in the business model. "Solar is expensive, so if you have got inefficient appliances, you are putting a huge amount on money in a large amount of solar. Rule of thumb, you go in with energy efficient appliances, like the LED bulb, super efficient fan, an LED television. The price of the solar drops one fourth and the price of these devices increases. But overall the solar panel, with these devices, will cost half as much, if we move towards the super efficient devices. The challenge of course is that where do you get them, and who is going to package them, who are going to make sure that they are getting the recovery every month? So the challenge actually is in the business model. All the components are there. As the volume will pick up, we will see the prices decrease."
The National Solar Mission has set a target of installing 100 GW of solar power by 2022, up from 3 GW today. For solar adoption to jump to the next level, there has to be greater infusion of money by the Government.
According to the Clean Energy Access Network, the Government must create a strong ecosystem for off grid solar energy systems. For instance there must be appropriate financial products for the poor who have a daily cash flow. NABARD plays an important role in improving energy financing. Subsidies are routed through NABARD.
Says MI Ganagi, Chief General Manager, NABARD, "For the rural banks to lend, bank managers needed awareness. We conducted a lot of training programmes. So under solar lighting systems, 1,80,000 units were financed. In Karnataka, around 14,000 units were financed. Last year the Central Government started this solar water pumping system. Of course this concept was their earlier too, but they took the one year mission mode."
But in March this year, the confidence of banks handling solar lending received a setback. The subsidy for solar lighting was suspended as the Government failed to clear the subsidy claims. Officials say the claims will be cleared soon.
G Prasad, Director, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, said, "We are in the process of clearing. We have already cleared 50 per cent of whatever was due which was carried out from 2013-2014. By next month end, the remaining dues will also be cleared. This year we have allocated around Rs 800 crore for off-grid, which is roughly 25 per cent of the ministry budget, to show the importance of the off grid programme."
Solar companies seek greater emphasis on innovation in technology, processes and market linkages.
To ensure that solar energy systems do not become dysfunctional, Selco trains rural youth as technicians, operators and micro entrepreneurs. It collaborates with the Rural Development and Self Employment Training Institute (RUDSETI) and other similar centres to create skilled human resources required for renewable energy enterprises.
Harish Hande, CEO, SELCO Foundation and Chairman, SELCO said, "I would say let's put larger targets for rural areas. For that, 3 things have to happen. Create the appropriate mechanisms in the ITIs and RUDSETIs so that appropriate training for potential energy entrepreneurs in the rural areas and especially non-English speaking rural entrepreneurs. Number 2, appropriate financial products through the 40,000 rural banks. Number 3 is creating multiple hubs of innovation. We have 300 million people now without electricity. We can actually be a very innovative country. Many of the business models, product models, service models haven't been created. We could be an example for the rest of the world."