Illuminating the Rural Poor of Odisha

Pages: 333-337
Munmun Mohapatra, Ramya Ranjan Behera, Sanjay Das, and Ranajit Bera (Rekhi Centre of Excellence for the Science of Happiness, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, West Bengal)

The study is a field note to two tribal villages in Chandaka region of Odisha, namely, Bhagabatipur and Firikinali. Both the villages are devoid of adequate electricity facilities. Although there is a grid connection in both the villages, it suffers from various problems that lead to ultimate darkness. The field visit includes pre and post-pilot installation visits under a DST sponsored project. The fundamental aim of the project is to promote large scale deployment of Micro Solar Domes (MSD) for renewable energy application and social empowerment of rural SC and ST communities through integrated techno-social interventions for addressing energy-poverty holistically. The villagers of Bhagabatipur have benefitted immensely from MSD, and many villagers are interested in installing it for a better lifestyle.