Gadvi Kailashben, a 42-year-old widow, lives in Modhera, home to the centuries-old Temple of the Sun and now the first village in India to run on solar energy.
She earns a meager income from farming which she uses to take care of her family. The government has installed solar panels on her house, which has helped her reduce a lot of household expenses.
“Before that, when there was no solar power, I had to pay a huge amount of electricity bills – almost 2,000 rupees. However, with solar installations, my electricity bill is now 0. Everything from the refrigerator to the washing machine now runs on solar energy in my house. Ms. Kailashben said.
“The The extra money is now saved In my account. I use that money for daily house expenses and for my children’s education,” she added.
By deducting her electricity bill, Ashaben not only saves the money she used to spend on electricity, but the excess electricity generated will be sold back to the grid and she will get her money back.
Renewable energy as a source of income
The transition to clean, renewable energy not only allows villagers to run more household electrical appliances to make life more comfortable without having to worry about electricity bills. It is also becoming a source of their income.
Ashaben Mahendrabhai, 38, lives with her husband and two children. “We work on our farm and used to pay huge electricity bills for agriculture. Since installing solar in our village, we have saved a lot of electricity. Previously, our electricity bill was around 2,000 rupees. It’s negative now,” she said.
With the amount minus the electricity bill, Ashaben not only saved the money she used to spend on electricity, but also Excess electricity generated is sold back to the grid and in return she gets money.
“The first time the project team came to us with the idea of solar power, we didn’t understand the concept so we refused to install it. We are illiterate to understand what solar energy is and have very little knowledge about it. But gradually, the team made us understand the concept and advantages of solar energy, how we will save electricity and moneythen we take care of it,” she said.
Pingalsinh Karsanbhai (right) feels that the project not only offers freedom from electricity bills, but “this savings is like a pension for our old age.”
Local farmers Pingalsinh Karsanbhai Gadhvi and Surajben Gadhvi, who are married, installed solar rooftops on their houses six months ago.
Pingalsinh Karsanbhai feels that this project will not only save them from paying for electricity, but the money saved will help them stay strong in their old age.
“We used to have an electricity bill of 3,000 rupees before and after going solar it is now 0. Now we are saving 3,000 rupees a month,” he said.
“These solar panels have benefited the entire village. All institutions like schools, public institutions, all benefit from solar energy in the village. With my personal ability, I saved 3,000 rupees. Now we don’t need more energy. The whole house runs on solar energy.”
Residents of India’s first solar village interact with the United Nations Secretary-General during his visit.
He exclaims that “this savings is like a pension for our old age. We are really happy about that.”
His wife, Surajben, all smiles and looks forward to recommending it to other villages.
“If this solar energy is installed nationwide, it will be very beneficial. It feels like the Sun God is energizing us through its light. This benefit that our village Modhera has, will reach the whole country,” she speaks.
Interact with the villagers of Modhera during his visit, UN Secretary General António Guterres praising the efforts of the Government and the people.
“Here, where the Temple of the Sun was built 1,000 years ago, there is a new sun temple. It is based on solar energy. And the reality is that solar energy is transforming the lives of the people of this village, making it healthier, giving them more prosperity, but at the same time, helping to save our planet. climate change is still happening uncontrollably. “
Inspired by Sun God
The Modhera Sun Temple in Gujarat, India, is currently running an all-solar 3D light show.
Home to Gujarat’s iconic Sun Temple, the village of Modhera is about 97 kilometers from Ahmedabad in Gujarat’s Mehsana district.
With a vision to power the Sun Temple and the entire village through the God of the Sun (solar energy), this project is the first of its kind where rural residents are expected to autonomy through green energy.
“The idea behind this project is because Modhera temple is a temple of the Sun God, so the entire power of this town and community must come from solar energy“Mamta Verma, Principal Secretary, Energy and Petrochemicals of Government of Gujarat said.
The Temple of the Sun now runs an all-solar 3D light show, its premises run on solar energy, and the parking area also has electric vehicle charging stations.
Solar-powered electric vehicle charging station at the Temple of the Sun in Modhera, India.
Renewable energy storage
Equipped with an array of solar panels on rooftops, on Government schools, bus stops, utility buildings, parking lots and even the grounds of the Temple of the Sun, Modhera benefits from A 6 megawatt power plant was installed in the nearby village of Sujjanpura .
With a village consumption of only one to two megawatts, redundancy is added to the transmission grid.
Government schools, bus stops and utility buildings in the village of Modhera in Gujarat, India, now run entirely on solar energy.
“There are three main components to this whole project. One is our ground mount 6 megawatt project. The second is the 15-megawatt battery storage system and the third is the one-kilowatt rooftops installed on 1,300 homes,” explains Gujarat Power Corporation Limited (GPCL) Project Manager Rajendra Mistry.
“Of the 1,000 rooftops that we have provided in the village, the first generation of electricity is used by the villagers, and the excess is fed into the grid.”
Funded by the Government of India and the Government of Gujarat, the estimated cost of the entire project is USD 9.7 million. What sets it apart is that Modhera is also the first village to become a net renewable energy generator.
Solar panels on the roofs of houses in Modhera, in the state of Gujarat, India.
“This is the first village in India where even at night, the villagers’ energy consumption comes from the solar component. That is the special point of this project,” said Vikalp Bhardwaj, CEO of Gujarat Power Corporation Limited.
Vision for the future
This demonstration project is expected to provide knowledge to solve the bottlenecks related to renewable energy. If the project is economically viable, the plan is to replicate it to other rural areas in Gujarat.
“This type of project acts as a demonstration project for other villages and towns in India,” said Mr. Bhardwaj. And similarly, other villages and towns can adopt this model to become self-sufficient, self-sufficient in terms of energy needs.”
Ashaben Mahendrabhai, a resident of Modhera, summed up the benefits.
“I would encourage other villages to install solar power because it is beneficial in every way, from saving money to saving electricity,” she said.
POWER BY THE SUN
- More than 1,300 households have 1 KW Rooftop Solar Systems on residential buildings.
- 316 KW rooftop solar PV system on various government buildings in Modhera, Samlanpura and Sujjanpura villages.
- 6 MW grid-connected ground-mounted solar power plant in Sujjanpura
- 15 MWh, 6 MW, Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) at Sujjanpura.
- Modhera uses only 1Mw, the rest is added to the grid.
- Install Smart Energy Meters (1700+) at the electricity customer level.
- Sun Temple runs entirely on solar energy running 3D Projection Light Show which is completely renewable energy.
- Sensor-based smart street lights near the Sun Temple.
- 50 KW solar parking infrastructure with 150 kWh battery storage with electric charging stations at the Modhera Sun Temple.
The installation of the solar panel has benefited the entire village of Modhera.
