LaBL (Lighting a Billion Lives)

8/14/2019 LaBL (Lighting a Billion Lives)

1/17

Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar

Post Graduate Program in Rural Management, 2007-2009

Course: Natural Resource Management

Instructor: Prof. C. Shambhu Prasad

Lighting a Billion Lives- LaBL

Submitted by :-

Sumendera Punia (Roll No.-55)

Vishal Kumar (Roll No. -59)


2/17

LaBL (Lighting a Billion Lives)

AsatoMaa Sat Gamaya

Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya

Mrityor Maa Amritam Gamaya

Oh Lord! Lead me from the unreal to the Real, from darkness to Light, from mortality to Immortality

How many India are there? While one is striding at a very fast pace riding on the growth of Information

Technology, Manufacturing, etc, the other is left behind in the hands of darkness. These are two faces of

the same country. When one end is struggling to arrange a days meal the other is driving a Mercedes

Benz. One is enjoying the chilled environment of an Air conditioned room, the other doesnt have access

to light.

It is the disheartened fact that 1.6 billion people are living in darkness; of which 400 million are from

India (we have crossed 60 years of our Independence one year back.) According to government data, 76

million rural households in India lack access to electricity. Of this, 65 million use kerosene, Wax candles

and dung cakes, firewood, and crop residue bio-mass for lighting. Each household for that spend around

Rs. 2to 5 per day. What they get in turn is low level of illumination in company with smoke and fire

hazards due to accidental pilfering of kerosene and tipping of candles.

Global status Report on renewable energy resources-2007 says Grid connected solar Photovoltaic (PV)

has been the fastest growing (50% annually) energy technology worldwide. Germany, Japan, Spain, and

USA are the leading nations in harnessing solar energy for fulfilling energy needs. Out of total 25 lakhs

solar homes worldwide 3.6 lakhs are in India second to China having 4 lakhs. Over the years reasons for

the lack of capacity expansion in power generation is the revenues earned are lesser than the cost of

operation. This weakness in energy supply causes loss of economic and social welfare of large section of

society


3/17

The sun is a giver of life. Our ancient rishis composed hymns in praise of the sun god. Sunlight was used

by early Greeks, Native Americans, and Chinese to heat their buildings. Solar energy drives the climate

and weather and supports virtually all life on the earth. Heat and light from the sun, along with solar-

based resources such as wind and wave power, hydro electricity and biomass, accounts for over 99.9% of

the available flow of renewable energy.

Nearly 3850ZJ (zeta-joules, one Zeta joule=1021 joules) of solar energy is available every year. At any

given point of time, the earths upper atmosphere receives 174 peta-watts (3.5 peta-watt=1015

watt) of

incoming solar radiation (insolation). About 6% of the insolation is reflected and 16% is absorbed when it

enters the atmosphere Solar power is used to refer to the conversion of sunlight into electricity. This can

be done either through the photovoltaic effect or by heating a transfer fluid to produce steam to run a

generator. India has favourable natural conditions for large-scale harnessing and deployment of solar

energy. Despite these favourable conditions, out of the total energy consumption of nearly 120 GW per

annum, only a small fraction is generated through solar energy. In our country, so far the solar energy

equipment has been focused towards rural, un-electrified areas as off grid applications. Large-scale solar

farms coupled with a promising feed in tariff initially would be a right combination to kick starts the

growth.

The solar lantern, a portable lighting device that uses CFL, has its own rechargeable battery inside that

can be charged every day using an 8to 10 watt solar panel. This is an ideal device to light up homes that

currently use biomass or Kerosene for lighting. About 5.8 lakh solar lanterns have been distributed in

India in the past 7 to 8 years under the program of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, but its

penetration is miniscule considering the size of the population.


4/17


5/17

Delivery Model: -

This whole model for the campaign is a fee-for-service model, where solar chargingstations are set up in villages for charging the lanterns and providing them on fee-for-service (or rental)

basis to households and enterprises on a daily basis. The charging stations are operated and managed by

local entrepreneurs who are selected and trained on technical, operational and daily book keeping

accounts by TERI in association with its grass-roots level partners and other like-minded institutions such

as NGOs, community-based organizations, educational and charitable trusts, local government units, self-

help-groups, and micro-finance institutions. These institutions, identified as campaign anchors, play a

significant role in coordinating, sustaining, and advancing the campaign.

*(P= primary organization that will be involved, S=Secondary organization that will be involved, along

with the primary organization in the respective scope.)

NGOs will facilitate TERI in identification of villages and suitable location of solar lantern charging

stations. Similarly for finding out potential people who can be trained for operating these stations. They

will also assist TERI and local entrepreneurs for developing business model and overall monitoring by

TERI for the identified station. After selection of the site, the local anchor point and the local

Scope Scope Details TERI GO Local Entrepreneur

1 Design and development of Solar

Lantern Package

P

2. Identification of the village, Site

and location for the development

of Stations

P

3. Identification of Local

Entrepreneur

P

4. Installation of Solar Charging

stations

P S

5. Development of Business models S P

6. Development of capacity building

of local entrepreneurs

P S

7. Awareness generation among the

local communities

S P S

8. usiness expansion and marketin S P


6/17

entrepreneur, the charging station is licensed. The event is followed by several focus group discussions

with the village elders, women, children, representatives of the local self-government and others. The

purpose of the discussions is to spread the awareness among the end-users on the benefits of the solar

lantern and its potential use in livelihood generation.

Availability of land and building (Fixed assets) will be ensured by locally selected entrepreneurs. They

will be held accountable for any mismanagement (damage to the hardware and security breach) in day to

day operations and monitoring processes at local level. They have to abide by the terms and conditions of

the agreement with local NGO.


7/17

Implementation Schedule: -

Activities Durations (Weeks)

Month 1 Month 2

1 3 1 2 3 4

First level talks and paper works

Identification of the village, Site and location

Identification of local Entrepreneur

Installation of Lantern Charging Station

Capacity building of the NGO/

entrepreneur/Community

Process of rentin and monitorin starts

Guidelines for the village selection in LaBL Project are:-

Village should be easily accessible at all the time.

Village may be electrified, de-electrified or un-electrified but the felt need for the usage

of solar lantern must be there at household level and also at entrepreneur level (e.g.

village haats, shops etc.)

Felt need should be for at least 15-20 days in a month and household should be willing to

spend Rs.2-5 per day for taking the lantern on rent.

The Model would possibly be more successful in village which already has ongoing

entrepreneurial activities, presence of self-help groups or any other livelihood and rural

development program me.

Villagers must have the willingness and the capacity to pay changing.

The key stakeholder in the campaign plays the most important role in advancing the cause of the

campaign. He/she uses the illumination from the solar lantern to facilitate his/her daily activities and also

empowered to facilitate the education of his/her children, initiate livelihood activities, and have better

access to health and sanitation facilities. The user pays a rental to the entrepreneur for managing the

charging station. The campaign follows a stringent monitoring and verification model. At the ground

level, the entrepreneur is responsible for maintaining daily record of his/her business. This data is

compiled monthly and sent to the campaign anchor, who in turn will send the data to TERI. A central


8/17

database is maintained at TERI and is used to monitor the various aspects of the campaign. A part of the

data will also be available through the LaBL website.

Socio-economic benefits: -

The local Entrepreneur running the village model earns decent Income from its operations-

Livelihood opportunity creating the financial opportunities for the entrepreneur. Thus apart from

providing reliable and ensured lighting to households at an affordable rate, the Campaign also facilitates

entrepreneurial development among rural communities.

This campaign provides excellent opportunity for public-private-people-partnership (P4) wherein the

private sector can enhance the effectiveness of developmental schemes of the government, particularly in

health, education and livelihoods sectors, by providing lighting through the LaBL. For instance, thegovernment supports the rural health workers; a solar lantern will help them in doing their duties

effectively, particularly when attending to medical emergencies at night. Similarly, the hostels for tribal

children which are funded under the universal education programmes of the government can be equipped

with solar lanterns to help children in studying at night. The community, represented by the entrepreneur

and users of lantern, in turn, can contribute towards operation, maintenance and sustenance of the

Campaign

Financial Viability: -

The LaBL campaign runs on a sponsorship and partnership model, wherein TERI seeks

donations from likeminded individuals and organizations to cover the cost of the solar lantern. An

individual can sponsor one solar lantern while an organization can sponsor the entire village (package of

50 lanterns) at a contribution of Rs 3600 and Rs 3, 00,000 respectively. With a fee-for-service delivery

model a solar charging station is set up by TERI which is operated and managed by a village

entrepreneur. This not only provides an employment opportunity but also makes the overall process

sustainable. The entire cost of setting up the solar panels, equipments, training to the entrepreneur is

borne by TERI.

What makes TERI believe in the success of the project is that a rural household would be willing to spend

Rs 2-5/day for using the solar powered lamp. This is derived from the fact that an average rural household

consumes 4-5 liters of kerosene per month. This amounts to 5*Rs 10 = Rs 50 a month. As per the

implementation strategy of LaBL, the village should have sufficient number of people willing to use the

lantern for 15-20 days on an average. The charge for renting the charged lantern depends upon the


9/17

population of the village. As per the website of TERI the implemented areas have 354 household on an

average.

LaBL implemented areas

State Household Population Remarks

Dupali P 875 000 Electrified\Erratic

Berakuchi ssam 85 48 Unelectrified

Daskin Dimoria ssam 25 1213 Unelectrified

Sahsoul ihar 115 80 Unelectrified

Jhamvu Vas aryana 188 1203 Electrified\Erratic

Chapri harkhand 150 1000 Electrified\ErraticChakdoha harkhand 150 00 Unelectrified

Mahtabera harkhand 1 04 Unelectrified

Ba apatia rissa 8 92 Unelectrified

Khasadiha rissa 60 56 Unelectrified

Kusabenti rissa 69 05 Unelectrifie

Banganga ajasthan 96 80 Unelectrified

Jodhula ajasthan 108 51 Unelectrified

Harendranagar

est

Bengal 741 3923 Unelectrified

Gangadharpur

est


Govindorampur

est


Daksin

Kashiabad

es


Average 354.94118 1917.47059

Illustration- 1

If we compute the expenditure of a family for solar lantern for 20 days it amounts to 20*3= Rs 60. This

cost is more than what he was incurring on kerosene for a month. The remaining 10 days will also add to

his expenditure. However the solar lantern brings in the intangible benefits of better lighting and clean

ambience. Thus individuals can work for longer hours while the children can study for longer hours and

that too in a smokeless environment.


10/17

a) TERI- The infrastructure cost of setting up the project in a village is between Rs 2.5 3 Lakhs.

This includes the cost of solar lanterns, solar panels, charging equipments, batteries etc. Each

village has 50 lanterns to be given on a rent. The amount charged for renting the lanterns is

shared between TERI, local NGO and the entrepreneur. Assuming that TERI gets 80% of the

revenue earned from a village where on an average Rs 3 is charged for renting the lanterns the

break even will come only after 5 years

Illustration 2

b) Individual Household: - Going by the expectation of TERI a household will shelve Rs 720/year

for availing the benefits of the project. Thus in 5 years he will shelve out Rs 3600 for lighting

purposes. Given that organizations like NEST India*

and SELCO** providing the solar lantern

along with the solar panel close to Rs 1500, the individual can not only own the lamp but also

save a potential Rs 2100 during the same period.

*NEST India- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmf_ZEQGKOU&feature=related

** SELCO- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVQJI5fNqbI

Both NEST and SELCO is Ashden award winner, for sustainable renewable energy solution

Installation cost/village = Rs 2, 50,000

Total lanterns in a village = 50

Rent per lantern/day = Rs 3

Total Rent collected/day = Rs 150 (Assuming all lanterns are rented)

Revenue collected/year = 150*30*12

= Rs 54,000

Share of TERI = Rs 43,200 (80% of revenue)

Break even in years = 2, 50,000/43200

= 5.78 years


11/17

Moreover with the Rural Electrification and other competitors like SELCO and NEST also in

the renewable energy space it will be interesting to see the financial feasibility of the project

on a long term.

Technical Feasibility: -

The LaBL project uses a solar lantern which has two lighting options, CFL for

evening operations and LED for overnight operations. On an average it can provide 4-5 hrs of CFL

lighting. The lantern is easy to use and is robust to last longer. However one constraint of the project is

that it is dependent on good weather conditions. Since the solar panels are mounted on the roof top, rough

weather conditions can damage the panels. Similarly cloudy c onditions can too affect the smooth

operations.

With the government pushing hard to eliminate the rural and urban divide a major thrust is on

telecommunications. With the emergence of mobile industry this seemingly impossible task seems to be

achievable. The LaBL project could have added towards this initiative by providing some mechanism

wherein one could recharge his mobile phone through the solar lantern. This could have impacted the

information flow in the village to a great exchange thus adding one more feather to its cap. Easy access to

information can improve socio-economic conditions to a great extend, thus increasing the impact of theLaBL project.

The program is being implemented in coordination with the local NGO. The NGO is responsible for

identification of a potential entrepreneur and then TERI provides the necessary technical training and

skills to handle the operations. This extends over two weeks after which the entrepreneur takes over

completely. Monthly reports are maintained and send to TERI by the local entrepreneur.

The servicing of the LaBL lamps would be done by TERI, however not much information is available. On

the other hand organizations like SELCO and NEST have devoted service centers which do a regularcheck every 3 months. The presence of SELCO and NEST is however restricted to South India.


12/17

Competitive Analysis: -

The LaBL project is fundamentally different as compared to most Solarlantern project being implemented or sold in India. No Solar Power project has gone to the extent

of a rented model. However being the first in the country LaBL can have the first move benefit.

Competitors can follow suit. No marketing survey so far has ever tried to look into the major

criteria for designing the Solar Lamp as per the customers need. However the LaBL solar lantern

tries to answer the different needs of the consumer as it has the provision of CFL and LED. CFL

mainly used for studying, evening work etc, while the LED is used for just providing light to

carry out daily chores i.e. Cooking, sweeping etc.

The Joint research teams of JIMT (Jaganaath Institute of Management and Technology) &

University of Illinois have come up with a specially designed solar lantern which will be

available at Rs 950; however there is a constraint that it only provides LED lighting, which gives

low light. However the project has not yet been commercialized but it has been patented by the

students who intend to produce it under their own organization.

Other commercial manufactures of solar lanterns are already selling lanterns to the rural areas

and are at the same time providing them with after sales-service (SELCO). They have set up

service centers to cater the after sales service and support.

A brief of the organizations into the solar lantern business is given as follows: -

SELCO India: - It is a Bangalore based organization and its Managing Director Mr. Harish

Hande, has won the Social Entrepreneur award 2007 given by the Nand & Jeet Kemaka

Foundation. SELCO, a social enterprise, provides sustainable energy services to under-served

households and businesses in India. Through its 25 energy service centers in India, SELCO has brought

reliable, affordable, and environmentally sustainable electricity to more than 75,000 homes and

The rent for service model is not new in India. Local entrepreneurs have been using solar panels to

recharge the batteries and rent it out to Vendors for their evening operations. However these

operations have been confined to better off states like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh etc. SELCO has

some customers who have used the solar panels for similar activities. LaBL has used these ideas

from various sources to come up with the fee-for-service model that includes the rent for the lamp.


13/17

businesses since 1995. From solar lighting and electricity, to clean cooking and wireless communications,

SELCO aims to empower its customers by providing complete packages of product, service and

consumer financing, in a very holistic manner. They have not only spread awareness about the benefit of

using Solar Lanterns but have also convinced bankers for the giving out loans to customers to buy this

product.

NEST Ltd: - It is a Hyderabad based organization and the winner of Ashden awards 2005. Ashden

awards are also known as the green Oscar award. Nest is a global player as manufacturer and supplier of

solar lighting solutions. Ashden Light Award winning AISHWARYA solar lamp is the flagship brand of

the company. Recently NEST bagged a contract of 1 million lamps to be exported to South Africa. The

lantern manufactured by NEST comes with a price tag in the range of Rs 1200- 1500. It used local agents,

SHGs to sell the lamps. It not only focuses on the rural masses but also the slum dwellers in cities.

LaBL NEST

IMT &

university

of Illionoi*

Tata BP

SolarSELCO

Solar Panels Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Rent Yes No No No No

CFL Yes Yes No Yes Yes

LED Yes No Yes No No

Warranty NA Yes NA Yes Yes

Lumen 250/15-20 250 15-20 250 250

Light

duration/Charge 4-7 hrs 3-4hrs 6hrs 3hrs4hrs

Servicing No Yes No No Yes

Life 10 5 2-3 years 5 5yrs

Cost 3600 1500 950 2600 NA


14/17

Tata BP Solar: - Tata BP Solar is a Joint Venture between Tata Power Company, a pioneer in the power

sector and BP Solar one of the largest Solar Companies in the world over the years; Tata BP Solar has

built on this rich lineage to become one of the largest Solar Companies in Asia. Tata BP Solar has the

distinction of obtaining ISO 9001 quality accreditation and ISO 14001 environmental standards

accreditation from BVQI, London. It has a range of product powered by solar energy and the basic entry

price for a solar lantern is Rs 2600. The shop which sells the solar lantern also provides service and each

solar lamp comes with a warranty period of one year. According to the shopkeeper of Tata BP solar shop

in Bhubaneswar, most of the solar lanterns are bought by rural population in remote areas and they dont

always go for the entry level solar lantern but the higher version priced at Rs 5500.

s per the conversation with one of the officials of TERI, the LaBL project is a social project and

TERI doesnt get any revenue from the setup. The revenue sharing is entirely between the NGO

and the village entrepreneur. The NGO needs the money for keeping a reserve for the regular

maintenance of the infrastructure. Thus the project should not be assessed from a business

perspective. However it is noteworthy that how long the project runs on sponsorship model.

Thus the assessment has been made to take care of the sustainability of the model. The model

can also create problems at the village level between the NGO and the villagers as only one of

them will get the benefit of managing the setup and using it as a source of revenue. This can

lead to disrepute of the NGO working in the region.


15/17

LaBL Globally: -

Besides India and South Africa less developed East Asian countries like Laos, Cambodia,

Indonesia and Myanmar are also to be included soon.

Rural Indonesia will also be covered under the plan, but we want to implement it first in India,' said Dr

Pachauri, who is also head of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which shared the

Nobel Peace Prize with ex-US vice-president and leading environmental activist Al Gore.

Later when successful in India it will be implemented in other countries. Grants and funds have been

constantly pouring in to support the project from across the world. This includes organizations like DFID,

HSBC, and Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation etc who have sponsored for 2-4 villages.

Environmental Benefits: -

The project promises local and global environmental benefits. Each solar lantern with an

average life of 10 years would displace 500-600 litres of kerosene oil, which when burnt would release

1.5 tonnes of CO2. Moreover it would provide better illumination in a smoke free environment. This

would have direct impact on the health conditions. Adding to this the solar lantern saves approximately

200KWh of electricity at the user end, which is translates in 250KWh of electricity at the production end

given the distribution and commercial losses. Thus a solar lantern in its life of 10 years saves about 2.8

tonnes of CO2 to be released in the atmosphere. This carbon savings can also be traded. The issue of

Climate change is getting hot and countries are signing up the agreement one by one. However this can

also bring in economic slump. One way to tackle this problem is to switch to green energy, solar energy

being one of them. Presently Government of India is giving huge subsidy on kerosene of upto Rs 14-

15/litre. This amounts to Rs 500 billion. If the government gradually directs this fund for giving subsidy

on solar projects, this can prove to be more meaningful as 33% of the subsidized kerosene is being used

for adulteration purposes presently. If such a change in policy is brought in it will accelerate the growth of

such projects all across the country. Economic growth will be boosted with longer working hour in

villages. It will also have a large impact on the carbon emissions and improved health conditions in these

areas.


16/17

Conclusion: -

Not much has been written about LaBL except news regarding it. It is yet to be seen howthe project does performs in the initial years. It would be immature to judge the project as a success or a

failure as it needs more time for such labeling. There is no doubt that this initiative by TERI is need of the

hour and it tries to answer the need of a billion people living in darkness. However its feasibility and

sustainability over a long term needs to be checked. With large differences in socio-cultural and economic

environment it is a challenging task to introduce such project in rural areas. Not only does the project

provides clean and better illumination to the households but also reduces the carbon emissions thus

contributing towards offsetting global warming. Increased government and organizational support can

increase the chances of the project to be a success. If only the government gradually directs the subsidyon kerosene towards these solar projects, it will increase the probability of the project to reach the needy

household at the right time and right cost.

Last but not the least a positive atmosphere is building wherein technology and management is joining

hands to answer the needs of the energy deprived population in a sustainable manner.


17/17

References

1. http://teriin.org/

2. http://labl.teriin.org/index.php

3. http://mnes.nic.in/

4. Climate Change-Solar energy Lighting up a Billion Lives- The Hindu Survey of Environment-2008

5. Akshay Urja-Renewable Energy-

May- June-2008/ Vol. 1 -Issue-6

March-April-2008/Vol.1-Issue-5

January-February/Vol.1-Isssue-4

6. http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Story/STIStory_257429.html7. http://www.ncsu.edu/nano/documents/LightaBillionLivesatNCState-

TERIVisitandWorkingSession_000.pdf

8. http://www.businesswireindia.com/PressRelease.asp?b2mid=15302

9. NEST Solar Lanterns, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmf_ZEQGKOU

10. SELCO Solar Lanterns, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGTO2Nm5lng&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0Y6UeLqoD0&feature=related

11. SELCO India Ltd, http://www.selco-india.com/

12. Solar NEST, http://www.solarnest.net/html/aboutus.html

Documents

LaBL (Lighting a Billion Lives)