Many governments struggle with the immense expense of developing traditional infrastructure for electricity. In the world of competing priorities, and limited resources, rural communities are often left without access to energy. Mera Gao Power, however, is working to find a solution to this problem in India. According to a 2010 report by the World Resources Institute, 48% of rural households in India are unelectrified. That translates into 400 million people nationwide that cannot access electricity of any kind. Mera Gao Power, is using innovative off grid solar solutions to address this problem. They are building and maintaining solar powered micro grids that provide electricity to village houses. This electricity is used for powering lamps and charging mobile phones - impacting various aspects of daily life.
The systems need only four solar panels to supply electricity for a village of 100 households. Each household that signs up receives two LED lights and one mobile-charging point for 25 rupees (about $.50) per week. The setup cost is an additional one time fee of 40 rupeees (about $.80). USAID has provided enough funding to Mera Gao Power to set up 50 villages this year, but their aim is to power 100,000 households by 2016 with these solar micro grids.
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| MGP's Model: panels, battery, distribution, lights |
Read more about it in the Guardian, or check out Mera Gao Power's website!
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