There exists a huge count of villages in India which do not have electrification as of yet and life in these areas comes to a half after sunset. While we stamp our feet and start fidgeting when there is an absence of electricity just for a few minutes, there are villages which have never experienced the presence of even an iota of electrified light. WattAVillage, a non-profitable organization works with budding individuals to provide these villages with enough electricity for basic lighting and mobile charging. It helps to replace resources like kerosene, wood and other fossil fuels with electricity in these villages.
The organization was established and began implementing its projects in April 2014. The first projects were carried out in Uttar Pradesh especially in areas around Bahraich and Barreily which have abundant villages around. The volunteers of WattAVillage educated and sensitized the people of these areas about usage of solar panels and how their production and utilization can provide ample amount of electrification to the villages. They believe that India will never be fully developed as long as there are people who go to sleep in complete darkness. Their main motive is to assure that everyone in India receives electricity in their home. Apart from this, they have also carried out projects based on fighting deforestation ‘Planting Trees: A Green Community Project’ and waste management ‘Green Waste Management’.
Presently, they are working to create a virtual network of interested individuals who are ready to contribute in different areas of the organization. Under the guidance of their trustees Ms. Tanya Ahuja and Ms. Beena Ahuja, the management committee, teachers, professionals and retired bureaucrats, they plan on surpassing Phase I and expanding their projects. They are working towards expanding the number of volunteers and moving on to villages situated in other parts of India like Maharashtra, West Bengal and more.
WattAVillage invites all the students who might be willing to work with their organization. Engineering students can volunteer for providing innovative solutions and help in researching on telemetry and solar engineering. Once in a while, they’ll get the opportunity of contributing in village electrification and laying the grid. On the other hand, marketing students can help in providing financially feasible models. They also invite Humanities students for community visits, social media promotion and other related work. Students who wish to improve the living standards of these villages should definitely volunteer for this organization.
You can contact WattAVillage at [email protected] to become a volunteer or contribute ideas.
Image Credits- wattavillage.com
Sudisha Misra
[email protected]
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