Sundarbans Villages to be Illuminated with Solar Streetlights

Around 25 solar streetlights would be installed on a public-private partnership (PPP) model. The poles are expected to generate 182.5 kilowatt of renewable electricity every year.

February 24, 2023. By Anurima Mondal

Solar energy is all set to bring light to the lives of around 4516 villagers in Sundarbans. The Directorate of Forest (South 24 Pargana) has partnered with the Kolkata Society for Cultural Heritage (KSCH) and TCG foundation to install solar lights across five villages namely Bhubaneshwari, Debipur, Modhho Gurguria, Purba Gurguria and Deulbari, Chituri Forest in Kultali range.

The solar streetlights will be a boon for the villages as being adjacent to the core area of the Sundarbans; villagers were victims of frequent snake bites.

Around 25 solar streetlights would be installed on a public-private partnership (PPP) model. According to the mandate given to the Kolkata Society for Cultural Heritage (KSCH) by the Directorate of Forest, the TCG foundation has come forward with the requisite funds for the solar lights to be installed by them.

Specific locations have been identified by the forest department for installing the lights. Communities have also been formed among villagers to monitor the poles and maintain the solar panels.

Besides brightening up the villages and distracting wild animals, the initiative will also reduce carbon footprint and promote renewable green energy in the times when India is continuously moving forward to achieve its ambitious renewable energy target of 450 GW by 2030. The poles are expected to generate 182.5 kilowatt of renewable electricity every year.

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Lighting

Solar streetlight

solar energy sector

renewable energy transition

remote rural households

Solar in India

TCG foundation