“If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it,” said Albert Einstein. Selling solar lighting systems to villagers seemed absurd to many educated Indians in the early 1990s. Though the liberalization of economy had started, it was yet to sweep clean the old mindsets. But Harish Hande, who was then in late 20’s, could see light in renewable energy, when others couldn’t think beyond kerosene lanterns in village huts.
With a seed capital of Rs 1000, SELCO, the company, was founded with Neville Williams in 1995. Since its inception, the company has sold, serviced and financed over 125,000 solar systems to households in rural pockets of Karnataka, parts of Gujarat and parts of Kerala. He opted for an open source model for the energy solutions and has refused to hold the Intellectual Property for his solar powered lights—in the hope that the products, while copied, would be improvised further. The ripples of his initiative, as a result, would reach wider courting new followers.
Hande, who has been given this year’s Ramon Magsaysay Award, has crushed the myth that poor people cannot afford renewable energy technologies; poor people cannot maintain sustainable technologies and social ventures cannot be run as commercial entities. His model of small-scale standalone solar installations is hope for some 500 million people in India, who don’t have access to grid at all. As a result, the electricity produced, where it needs to be consumed becomes important. A bit of imagination and change in mindset could help in deploying such energy solutions in some segments of urban India.
The inspiration came to Hande while on a weekend trip to Dominican Republic, a leader in energy initiatives in the Caribbean. But he could understand it well as he was associated with energy research for a while. At that time, he was engaged in doctorate in energy engineering (solar specialty) at the University of Massachusetts (Lowell).
An undergraduate in Energy Engineering from the IIT, Kharagpur, Hande could figure out how to bridge the finance to make the solar lighting a success. SELCO empowers its customer by providing a complete package of product, service and consumer financing through grameena banks, cooperative societies, commercial banks and micro-finance institutions.
Though it may sound absurd, but there are many pockets in urban India where solar lighting could replace the grid connected ones. The street lights and those used outside the residences could go for solar. Even the parks could opt for such an energy solution. Some of the hoardings in New Delhi are using it. Apart from reducing the pressure on the grid, the increasing use of solar would reduce carbon emissions to the environment. It would also reduce the government’s import bill on kerosene.
What’s needed is a push from the government. It is more of a management issue than technology. Hande’s success story needs to be replicated in urban India. One hopes, someone like Hande emerges in urban India—soon.
With a seed capital of Rs 1000, SELCO, the company, was founded with Neville Williams in 1995. Since its inception, the company has sold, serviced and financed over 125,000 solar systems to households in rural pockets of Karnataka, parts of Gujarat and parts of Kerala. He opted for an open source model for the energy solutions and has refused to hold the Intellectual Property for his solar powered lights—in the hope that the products, while copied, would be improvised further. The ripples of his initiative, as a result, would reach wider courting new followers.
Hande, who has been given this year’s Ramon Magsaysay Award, has crushed the myth that poor people cannot afford renewable energy technologies; poor people cannot maintain sustainable technologies and social ventures cannot be run as commercial entities. His model of small-scale standalone solar installations is hope for some 500 million people in India, who don’t have access to grid at all. As a result, the electricity produced, where it needs to be consumed becomes important. A bit of imagination and change in mindset could help in deploying such energy solutions in some segments of urban India.
The inspiration came to Hande while on a weekend trip to Dominican Republic, a leader in energy initiatives in the Caribbean. But he could understand it well as he was associated with energy research for a while. At that time, he was engaged in doctorate in energy engineering (solar specialty) at the University of Massachusetts (Lowell).
An undergraduate in Energy Engineering from the IIT, Kharagpur, Hande could figure out how to bridge the finance to make the solar lighting a success. SELCO empowers its customer by providing a complete package of product, service and consumer financing through grameena banks, cooperative societies, commercial banks and micro-finance institutions.
Though it may sound absurd, but there are many pockets in urban India where solar lighting could replace the grid connected ones. The street lights and those used outside the residences could go for solar. Even the parks could opt for such an energy solution. Some of the hoardings in New Delhi are using it. Apart from reducing the pressure on the grid, the increasing use of solar would reduce carbon emissions to the environment. It would also reduce the government’s import bill on kerosene.
What’s needed is a push from the government. It is more of a management issue than technology. Hande’s success story needs to be replicated in urban India. One hopes, someone like Hande emerges in urban India—soon.
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