568k 
233k 
41k 
Subscribe 
The story of the Greenpeace micro-grid project is inspiring. It is unbelievable to see an entire village lit-up by solar energy. It illustrates how, in a country like India, universal energy access can be achieved without compromising the environment with coal pollution.
It’s motivating because the affordable micro-grid became a reason for an entire community to join hands and work together to solve its energy problem, and to make this project a success. What a privilege it is to see sign boards on the highway saying: Dharnai Solar Village—1 km ahead.
We have done it with the support of the villagers of Dharnai, and with partners BASIX and CEED. After two months of successful testing, we launched the micro-grid on July 20 with the eldest person of Dharnai (80 years old) formally switching it on in front of a supportive crowd of thousands.
With an electricity system in place after 30 years of waiting, Dharnai now has all the elements to build a strong local economy. Their progress is no longer thwarted by a lack of electricity.
Dharnai shows a way forward for thousands of other villages everywhere which have been left behind. These villages can develop their own clean power and contribute to saving their environment by showing we don’t need to use nuclear, coal or other fossil fuels for energy.
Dharnai is just the beginning. India has 80,000 more villages that need solar micro-grids. Greenpeace India will work to build greater collaboration to ensure all get access to clean, reliable electricity.
There is a story here that goes well beyond India. Hundreds of millions live without electricity. For them, the Dharnai solar-powered micro-grid could be a game-changer, a model for bringing clean, reliable energy to those energy-starved millions.
Communities without electricity, and their governments, can take a leap forward and develop the innovative solar systems. And communities can avoid the energy systems of the past that plague the world and build a clean energy system they can own and control.