IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Fall 2013 - 68

respiratory ailments. Since women
are the ones primarily involved in
cooking and are frequently helped
by children, they suffer the most
from indoor pollution and related
diseases. Another health problem
that women and children encounter while collecting bio fuels is
unprotected exposure to venomous
insects and snakes. During the survey it was found that seven villagers from Semera had encountered
either snake or scorpion bites while
collecting firewood in forests.
Many women also experience
chronic back pain. Due to excessive
physical labor for several hours every
day some women suffer from spinal disc herniation more commonly
known as "slipped disc." No forms
of transportation, not even carts, are
available to carry fuelwood. Instead,
the women rely on their shoulders
and heads to carry wood. The problem turns worse during summers
when besides collecting firewood for
day to day needs, women also have
to stack up firewood for the rainy season, since during rainy days dry firewood is not available. This demands
much more labor, which forces
women to drag their children into
household work. It is a pity to see
children collecting firewood instead
of playing or doing something productive during summers, when more
prosperous children spend time
enjoying summer holidays.

Bysanivaripalle - Successful
Implementation of RETs
for Cooking
Bysanivaripalle is a quiet and peaceful village situated around 100 km
away from the city of Tirupati,
India. This village has set an example for the nation with its technological sophistication. Nearly 45
families stay here and this rural
neighborhood is lined with modern biogas plants and filled with
the glare of solar reflectors which
make the presence of renewable
energy highly conspicuous. The
use of RETs in Bysanivaripalle
started over twelve years ago when
68

an entrepreneurial farmer named
Sadashiv Reddy invested his personal savings to set up a small biogas plant in his backyard which he
fed with cow dung. He took this step
in order to get rid of the drudgery
associated with firewood collection
from distant forests. On witnessing
the benefits of the first biogas plant
and the impact it had on Sadashiv's
life, twenty two farmers followed
and installed biogas plants. During
that time the village was generating
500 tons of cowdung and 50 tons
of sericulture2 waste per year which
could be used as raw material for
biogas production. The results were
dramatic, and today the entire village uses only renewable energy
for cooking. Using RETs for cooking in Bysanivaripalle went one
step further nearly five years back
when a local official from a government organization named Non
Conventional Energy Development
Corporation of Andhra Pradesh
(NEDCAP) visited the village and
got impressed by the independent
implementation of biogas technology there. He observed that there
were a few families in the village
that still depended on firewood for
cooking since, they didn't own any
cattle. He recommended the use of
solar power as a solution and coordinated between the government
and the villagers to introduce solar
cookers. The solar cookers were
not only provided to the cattleless families but also to families
who already owned biogas plants.
Consequently, solar power was
used during the day time and biogas was used at night and during
rainy seasons. NEDCAP installed
modern parabolic reflectors' based
solar cookers (K14 solar cookers)
to make solar cooking hassle free.
K14 solar cookers3 are easier to
2

Sericulture is the rearing of silkworms for the
production of raw silk.
3
K14 solar cooker's technical specifications:
Diameter-1.4 m; Weight-18 kg; Width of focal
point of heating-28 cm; boils 3 L of water in 30
min on a sunny day [12].

operate, less time consuming and
attain temperatures as high enough
for frying. Each solar cooker cost
INR 6250 of which the government
provided a subsidy of INR 2500
through NEDCAP. Another INR
2750 was provided to each family
by Eco Centre ICNEER and Gadhia Solar Energy Systems Pvt. Ltd.
The farmers were asked to pay the
remaining INR 1000 in monthly
installments; instead of providing
the entire technology for free, the
farmers were asked to make this
contribution of INR 1000 to inculcate in them a sense of involvement and responsibility towards the
solar energy initiative. This strategy worked, and today the entire
responsibility of maintenance of
the solar technology lies in the
hands of the villagers who appear
quite well versed with the technicalities. Training conducted by
government officials also played an
important role in integrating RETs
into the lives of the villagers. As a
result of this training, from installation to repair, each task can be
carried out independently by the
villagers without help from outside.
Women have become proactive and
have learned how to use and manage these modern technologies.
The use of renewable fuel has not
only made the village energy self
sufficient, but has also added value
to various aspects of the villagers'
lives, including social well being
and good health.
Economic Situation
Today, women in Bysanivaripalle are
economically independent because
they are able to work and earn without worrying about collecting firewood. This has improved their status
in society and has made their families more financially stable. Savitha,
a 31-year-old mother of two, started
selling vegetables after the introduction of RETs for cooking. Today she
earns over INR 2000 per month and
sends both her daughters to school.
She said, "I am independently earning and have also opened a bank

IEEE TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY MAGAZINE

fALL 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Fall 2013