A enterprising project in the remote reaches of rural India brings light – literally – to the poor masses. The future potential of the undertaking is immense. Tinginaput is an ordinary village in remote rural India: two rows of neat mud houses, a couple of water pumps, a mango tree where people gather to talk. But there is something very modern perched on the tiles of each roof: a solar panel the size of a couple of A4 books.
From these, wires lead into the houses, bringing light and power. Five tall street lamps have their own solar system as well – giving light through the night. That, say the villagers, is the best thing of all about the arrival of green power: they no longer fear attacks from bhalu – bears – from the surrounding hills after dark.
Three years ago four women from this little hamlet made an extraordinary journey. Not only were they leaving their remote highland homes for the first time in their lives, they were also travelling into modernity, way beyond the strict boundaries that govern a woman’s life among the tribes of India’s Eastern Ghats.
After receiving training under a programme in solar power technology Orissa Tribal Empowerment and Livelihoods Programme (OTELP), the women came back to bring light and power in their villages. Known as India’s female barefoot solar engineers, today these tribal women are engaged in spreading solar power far and wide.
Pulka Wadeka, like most women in the hills of the state of Orissa, cannot read or write. But she can wire up and run a solar-powered 12-volt electricity system. She also wields pliers and multimeter like a practised electrician. Pulka and her friends’ journey to the southern city of Hyderabad for five months training in solar power technology came after much hard work. The women participants had to be convinced to travel to the big city, where no one could speak their language. Training was hard – they even had to learn the English alphabet and numbers to work out the circuit diagrams.
The solar panels have made a difference to many aspects of life at Tinginaput.
First, villagers save on kerosene – an expensive item and one that carries a fire risk – for their oil lamps. Also, the bright, portable lights they now use allow handicraft work, such as making brooms, to be done at all hours, not just during daylight. Children can do school work into the evenings. And, crucially for families constantly on the edge of hunger, there is more time for working the fields. Incomes are increasing.
Success at Tinginaput means solar power could spread across the district. There are 127 other villages without electricity in the administrative “block” and conventional electricity is not likely within five years. Solar power is now becoming an important part of Orissa’s search for greener energy generation, with several large-scale projects approved this year.
Even though many rural areas of India have vast pylons bringing hydro-electric power to India’s cities but, ironically, these do not bring power to the villages. And although the Indian government has pledged to electrify all rural areas, the process is slow and expensive.
The women of Tinginaput already have a contract to build 3,000 solar-powered lanterns for schools and institutions. A training centre has been set up, to teach other people from the hill tribes how to erect street lighting and house power systems. The centre proudly announces the work of the women’s new cooperative - the Orissa Tribal Women Barefoot Solar Engineers Association where the cooperative will earn 50 rupees for each lamp, more than double of most peoples’ daily subsistence, therefore providing better means to earn too. Each lamp will earn the association 150 rupees to re-invest in the workshop.
What’s very satisfying about such a programme is the increased strength of communities, especially among women. That may be the most important thing, because social cohesion enables people to withstand shocks. It gives them better access to finance, to information and skills – enabling them to adapt to the challenges ahead.
The programme has now turned into a flagship project for the state government. Having made women in charge of things has improved their status in the society and has also made them more confident. There is also a big demand for solar electricity – everyone can see how it will save money and make life easier. 
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