DESI POWER
DESI_ MANTRA for Renewable Energy!
D ESI Power’s EmPower Partnership (EmPP) model based on stand-alone biomass gasifier based power plants in rural areas, is the ideal vehicle for large-scale commercialisation of renewable energy and the simultaneous promotion of sustainable development of rural areas, through the Independent Rural Power Producers (IRPPs). World Bank considers this model as a perfect example of an ideal win-win solution.
After the success of its first phase of field trials, DESI Power launched the 100 village EmPP in the Araria district of Bihar.
Problem
DESI Power’s village level experience during implementation has shown that one of the critical bottlenecks for a large scale replication of the EmPP Programme is the lack of trained manpower at all technical and managerial levels. The reluctance of city trained persons to move to a village or small town is one major barrier. The tendency of local men trained by DESI Power to seek their fortunes elsewhere as soon as they become productive is the other big problem.
Based on DESI Power’s experience and track record, finance for the power plant can somehow be put together by raising local equity and bank loans, selling Certified Emission Reduction (CERs) and getting government subsidy, but raising capital for the micro-enterprises in villages is a far more difficult task. Since the EmPower Partnership Program focuses on micro-enterprises linked to the generation and supply of electricity and energy services for local job creation, the lack of capital for building micro-enterprises adversely affects the progress of the total program. After discussions with SBI, the largest Indian bank, DESI Power is signing an MOU with SBI to enable the villagers to borrow directly to start their own small enterprises and businesses. Under the MOU with SBI, DESI Power has agreed to train the local entrepreneurs and their staff so that they can run the business profitably and service the bank loan.
Solution
Recognising the seriousness of the problem, DESI Power decided to find a lasting solution to the problem of staffing, if the 100 Village EmPower Partnership Program is to succeed within the planned time frame. A target of training about 3000 local people within 10 years has been set to achieve the programme goals.
DESI Power has, therefore, started a “Management Training Centre for Rural Women” called “DESI_MANTRA”. To utilize the rural hands for restructuring the rural socio-economic scenario, the centre provides training to women in areas of relevance to EmPP Programme: computer usage, biomass generation and management, energy services, basics of micro-finance, book keeping and accounting, project management, project profitability and personnel management.
Solution
- Develop trained local persons, with a focus on rural women.
- Identify and train local entrepreneurs, inculcate professional and management skills in the rural people, especially in rural women, through a rural business incubation program.
- Hands-on training in using personal computers / business software packages for managing rural enterprises.
- Identify and develop micro-finance skills.
- Promotion of vermiculture, organic farming, biogas.
- Promotion of fuel and agro forestry.
- Promote team-working environment and sharpen team-building skills.
- Biomass gasification, biogas, power generation and management
- Rural energy services: making solar ovens, solar panels, LED lamp assemblies, energy efficient stove, value addition to the agro by-products by briquetting and so on.
- Rural enterprises
- Basics of office administration
- Basics of book keeping and accounting
- Basics of project management and monitoring
- Basics of financial management
- Basics of micro-finance
- Fuel and agro forestry (bio diesel etc.) and
- Vermiculture, organic farming, biogas etc.
A Capacity Building Steering Committee (CBSC), with local intelligentsia, agriculture scientists, bankers, media people and educationalists, was set up on March 30, 2006 in Araria. Ten local women and three rural young boys along with two urban boys were selected as the first batch of trainees. Formal classes were started on May 22, 2006. Each day a three hour classroom teaching was conducted including theory and practical modules. After three months teaching all the trainees were put on the job training for another three months. One girl among them has been selected as team leader to manage the new trainees. Till December’06 all the trainees worked in two groups, namely Project Auditing and Developers Group and Bio business Group. Three boys have also been selected and trained partly in Bangalore for Bio business Group and put on the job. The five trainees (boys) of DESI_MANTRA are already getting a stipend from DESI Power since April’ 06. As projects of DESI Power will get added on, the rest of the trainees of the first batch and next batches will be put on the job.
The second batch of DESI_MANTRA will be started by the end of January 07. It is planned that only two batches will be trained by DESI_MANTRA each year. The feedback from the first batch is going to be utilised in the coming batches with changes in the pattern and course modules. Following the success of fellow villagers, a large number of applications for admission to the second batch have already been submitted by the local women and men.
A four-member MBA student team of MIT Solan School of Management, USA has opted to do research on DESI_MANTRA and will submit their report by the end of January. This report would mainly concentrate on the business plans of MANTRA, and may help DESI Power to raise funds and structure DESI_MANTRA in a more efficient manner.
Abhishek
Sharan & S.N.Sharan
desipower@airtelbroadband.in
desipower@airtelbroadband.in