Smart Power India’s ‘Solar Se Samridhi’ Campaign encourages business owners in rural UP to adopt rooftop solar

The “Solar Se Samridhi” campaign by Smart Power India, a subsidiary of The Rockefeller Foundation in India, was launched in September. The campaign aims to promote the adoption of Rooftop Solar in micro-enterprises and catalyse the energy transition for millions of micro-enterprises by putting in place

structural elements to support the market players. This is in line with the Government’s vision to increase the uptake of Rooftop Solar in the state. The UP Government recently announced the development of rooftop solar projects to solarise government and semi-government buildings as part of its new renewable energy initiative.

In the first phase of the campaign, a mobile van known as the “Solar Rath'' has travelled across 55 villages in the Varanasi district, covering a distance of 1430 kilometres and engaging the people of Varanasi with interactive roadshows and performances. The campaign has engaged with 5300 potential rural MSMEs so far, with entrepreneurs showing interest in adopting rooftop solar for their businesses for more than 5kW of anticipated demand. The initiative has been gaining popularity in the villages.

With the “Solar Se Samridhi” campaign, Smart Power India is advancing on the Government’s vision and organising interventions in the local communities to sensitise entrepreneurs about the benefits of switching to clean energy for productive use. The campaign is set to expand its outreach to other parts of the state, with activities starting in the Mirzapur region soon.

Encouraging the team, Mohan Kumar Sharma, Deputy Commissioner, Varanasi, UP, said, “The state government is committed to supporting sustainability goals, and this campaign has added great value to the vision of the state. Switching to solar energy will help in reducing emissions in the state due to the use of conventional sources like diesel and help businesses grow in a sustainable way.”

Congratulating the team on the success of the first phase of the campaign, Prem Prakash Singh, Project Officer, UPNEDA, said: “The roadshow has engaged the communities creating curiosity and enthusiasm among people to know how they can increase their incomes and improve the well-being of their families through rooftop solar.”

On this important milestone of the awareness drive, Mukesh Khandelwal, Head C&I Programme, Smart Power India, said, “It is great to see the positive response from the community through the past month showing acceptance for a switch to cleaner sources of energy. Smart Power India’s Rooftop Solar for C&I Programme has been driven by the renewable energy goals set by the Government and continues to improve socio-economic outcomes in rural India.”