The project proposed is to set up renewable solar energy in the villages – both for domestic consumption, the rural Community Radio Station as well as for the various training and tuition centres in the villages.

SARVAM, Sri Aurobindo Rural & Village Action & Movement, through its various initiatives has been working to develop a progressive and inclusive village community model that is sustainable and scalable. SARVAM is currently working with 60 villages in several verticals including livelihood, health, nutrition, education, sanitation, youth, women, vulnerable and marginalised, etc.

There are 25,000 households (with a population of 1,50,000) in the 60 villages that SARVAM has undertaken to create models of holistic development. Although the Tamil Nadu State Electricity Board has connected most of the areas in the villages, the quality, voltage and stability of power supply is very poor. In most of the houses, the supplied power can support merely a bulb or two.

This affects effectiveness of children’s education as well as livelihood activities of the community apart from hindering regular domestic chores at night.

Apart from the community in general, the other units of SARVAM that get affected are:

1. Sharanam – Rural Skill Development Centre
2. Pudhiya Udhayam - Community Radio Station
3. SARVAM’s Village Tuition Centres
4. SARVAM’s Computer Training Centres

Solar energy i.e. energy from the sun provide consistent and steady source of solar power throughout the year. The main benefit of solar energy is that it can be easily deployed by both home and business users as it does not require any huge set up like in case of wind or geothermal power. Solar energy not only benefits individual owners, but also benefits environment. Solar energy is one of the most widely used renewable energy source.

As a pilot program, SARVAM plans to select 20-25 houses in 10 villages for implementing solar power units. These would serve as models for domestic solar energy and demonstrate, to the rest of the community, its advantages as well as proper usage. The community will be aware, ready and inspired to install and use solar power for domestic needs in subsequent scale-up.

There is lack of sufficient effective and sustainable source of energy in the villages which presently struggle with unstable and insufficient power supply from the State Electricity Board.

The specific solution proposed is to set up renewable solar energy in the villages – both for domestic consumption, the rural Community Radio Station as well as for the various training and tuition centres in the villages.

There are 25,000 households (with a population of 1,50,000) in the 60 villages that SARVAM has undertaken to create models of holistic development. Although the Tamil Nadu State Electricity Board has connected most of the areas in the villages, the quality, voltage and stability of power supply is very poor. In most of the houses, the supplied power can support merely a bulb or two.

Apart from the community in general, the other units of SARVAM that get affected are:

1. Sharanam – Rural Skill Development Centre
2. Pudhiya Udhayam - Community Radio Station
3. SARVAM’s Village Tuition Centres
4. SARVAM’s Computer Training Centres