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the major question is how would a household pay a cost of an iPhone (around INR 50,000) if they can't afford electricity. I know that I sound cynic but that's t

the major question is how would a household pay a cost of an iPhone (around INR 50,000) if they can't afford electricity. I know that I sound cynic but that's the truth in India. Rural areas which lack electricity mainly do so because of lack of enough demand that can pay for the electricity. There are NGOs/Non-profits like 'Barefoot College' providing solar-lanterns which IMO is a better way forward: Empowering people by enabling them in making those lanterns which in turn light their houses up. The cost of lantern is factored in the labor work they do in making them.

shripadk 10y ago
Read this article: http://www.financialexpress.com/economy/why-modi-governments-37-billion-power-reforms-may-have-to-wait/436554/ http://www.financialexpress.com/economy/why-modi-governments... and you'll know why. The problem is not "lack of enough demand that can pay for electricity". The problem is meeting environmental standards, which incidentally, wasn't a problem at all for most developed countries (there wasn't much awareness about the cost to the environment when US was forging ahead with coal power). Today, the same US asks India to limit using coal for power generation. The only alternative now for India is to either go with Nuclear energy based power grids (which will take longer to setup) or solar/wind (higher initial investment).
nowarninglabel 10y ago
No reason we couldn't provide micro-loans or wind turbines in the same way we have done for solar lanterns and such with partners like Barefoot.
- gordon_freeman 10y ago
  Yes that's the model I think can solve the electricity problem in developing/poor countries like India, Africa, etc. Through micro-loans and labor-conversion-to-product/services. I for one do not believe even 1% in giving subsidies here and there to solve such problems because they are just temporary, gives false-hope and inflate expectations that problems are being solved but in reality they are not.

shripadk 10y ago

Read this article: http://www.financialexpress.com/economy/why-modi-governments-37-billion-power-reforms-may-have-to-wait/436554/ http://www.financialexpress.com/economy/why-modi-governments... and you'll know why. The problem is not "lack of enough demand that can pay for electricity". The problem is meeting environmental standards, which incidentally, wasn't a problem at all for most developed countries (there wasn't much awareness about the cost to the environment when US was forging ahead with coal power). Today, the same US asks India to limit using coal for power generation. The only alternative now for India is to either go with Nuclear energy based power grids (which will take longer to setup) or solar/wind (higher initial investment).

nowarninglabel 10y ago

No reason we couldn't provide micro-loans or wind turbines in the same way we have done for solar lanterns and such with partners like Barefoot.

gordon_freeman 10y ago
Yes that's the model I think can solve the electricity problem in developing/poor countries like India, Africa, etc. Through micro-loans and labor-conversion-to-product/services. I for one do not believe even 1% in giving subsidies here and there to solve such problems because they are just temporary, gives false-hope and inflate expectations that problems are being solved but in reality they are not.