Maligaon is a small village of 55 households in Thuamul Rampur block of Kalahandi district in Odisha. Gram Vikas and the people of Maligaon have been partners for over 30 years, collaborating on projects ranging from sanitation to education and solar energy.

 In 2009, the village community and Gram Vikas installed a solar micro-grid. The main system components included a 9.65 kW total PV array capacity, 96 kWh tubular lead-acid battery bank and an Urja Bandhu (charge controller that makes available a fixed amount of energy daily) in every home.

 However, in 2013, the solar micro-grid failed due to the death of the tubular lead acid batteries and improper maintenance. In 2014, the main grid was installed in Maligaon. However, blackouts lasted (at worst) up to months at a time in the monsoon season.

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In September 2018, Gram Vikas and the community started work on renewing the microgrid. Odisha State Planning Board, State Bank of India Youth for India Fellowship, and CAT International Projects supported with initial funding. Eshaan Patheria, SBI Youth for India Fellow and a Harvard Alumnus led the revival drawing on his technical expertise in renewable energy and on-ground experiences in the Dominican Republic and Tanzania. 

The renewal initiative, ‘Solar Micro-grid Renewal for Rural Lives & Livelihoods’ set the goal of “providing the people of Maligaon a firm-footing on the next rung up the energy ladder for at least the next 10 years.” Four new technologies within the system would ensure this move:

• Longer-lasting lithium ferrophosphate (LFP) batteries
• Three-phase power to take on heavier loads
• An additional seven kilowatts of solar panels to increase the array’s capacity and lifespan
• Smart meters that “collect real-time data on energy consumption at the household level” to build a culture of sustainable usage

Mohan Majhi (L), age 18, and Hiran Naik (R), age 23, carry a finished roofing sheet to be placed on the roof. Photo credit: Ajaya Behera.

A successful crowdfunding campaign from April to end-August 2019 helped raise the remaining funding, from 110 generous donors, to complete the project. On 8 September 2019, we commissioned the solar micro-grid for use. Beyond just lighting up the houses and streets, this has the potential to enable new and alternative livelihoods, improved health and education outcomes and better farm productivity. 

Three women from the community, one from each of the three hamlets of Maligaon, will now manage the system as a small business. These women are active community leaders, who are overseeing and facilitating the renewal process. They are also being trained in essential solar engineering for their upcoming work as co-operators of the system.

Jamuna Patel, mother of four, sprinkles water on new plaster of the wall of the powerhouse to help it cure. Photo credit: Ajaya Behera.

The renewed micro-grid will provide consistent access to high quality electricity to Maligaon. Through this initiative, we also aim to demonstrate the new promise of micro-grids to support rural lives and livelihoods with the use of modern technologies and effective community management.

Laxmi Naik from Maligaon shares the hope of the whole village, “There were 55 solar panels. Now, we got 28 new. There were 60 batteries before. They did not have enough capacity, so we got 14 new batteries. As they say, there is a guarantee that these batteries will work for the next 14-15 years. So, every family in Maligaon hopes to see 24*7 electricity for the next 10-15 years.” 

Watch the video playlist on stories from Maligaon about the potential impact of the microgrid on lives and livelihoods. 

Harvard University wrote about the Maligaon microgrid renewal effort in a feature titled Electrifying Rural India with Solar Energy.