From savings groups to solar entrepreneurs: Telangana’s SHG women take the leap

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Members of Vikarabad Zilla Samakhya and Kotepally Mandal Samakhya at their 1-MW ground-mounted solar power plant at Barwad village in Kotepally mandal in Vikarabad district. | Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL

On a rocky stretch of land in Vikarabad district, rows of solar panels stand as a symbol of a new ambition for Telangana’s women’s self-help groups (SHGs).

The SHGs that began as collectives built around savings and credit is now evolving into a model of asset ownership, with women’s federations, or Samakhyas, taking charge of megawatt-scale solar power projects under the Indira Mahila Shakti (IMS) programme.

“It was a great surprise when we were told that a solar unit would be allotted to our federation. We had never imagined taking up such a major venture in our lives,” says 38-year-old treasurer of the Vikarabad Zilla Samakhya K. Bhagyalaxmi recalling the excitement.

A Class X-educated homemaker, Ms. Bhagyalaxmi is now among the women overseeing the federation’s 1-MW ground-mounted solar power plant at Barwad village in Kotepally mandal. The project was set up by the Vikarabad Zilla Samakhya and the Kotepally Mandal Samakhya.

Described as a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country, the project marks a significant shift in the role envisaged for rural women’s collectives — from beneficiaries of livelihood programmes to owners and operators of productive assets.

“We are also planning to set up one more unit on the land adjacent to the existing plant,” says Vikarabad District Collector Deepak Tewari.

The solar project, being implemented by the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP) in association with the Telangana Renewable Energy Development Corporation Ltd. (TGREDCO), was recently commissioned and connected to the power grid.

“The 1-MW plant set up with an estimated project cost of ₹2.84 crore is expected to generate about 18.3 lakh units of electricity a year. The Telangana Electricity Regulatory Commission (TGERC) approved a tariff of ₹3.13 per unit. These plants are also eligible for a capital subsidy of up to ₹50 lakh under the MSME policy,” says SERP Director M.V. Krishna.

According to SERP CEO Divya Devarajan, the initiative is designed as a “win-win-win” model.

“Government land that is unusable for agriculture is protected for the next 25 years. Green energy is generated, which is good for the environment. Profits go to the SHG federation with thousands of rural poor women members,” she says.

Land sufficient to set up 2-MW plants at each location was initially identified across 31 districts.

Plants with a combined capacity of 9 MW have already been established in Khammam, Kumaram Bheem Asifabad, Vikarabad, Peddapalli, Wanaparthy, Jangaon and Mahabubnagar districts.

A 1-MW plant requires about four acres of land and is expected to generate around 4,500 units of electricity-a-day. At the approved tariff, the plants could generate gross revenue of roughly ₹14,000 to ₹15,000 a day, translating into about ₹4.5 lakh to ₹5 lakh a month.

Memoranda of understanding have been signed with the distribution companies (DISCOMs) for the purchase of the electricity generated by the plants.

Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Danasari Anasuya Seethakka says the initiative is aimed at giving women a stronger economic footing.

“The government is implementing the IMS programme with the objective of helping women build substantial assets and achieve greater economic independence,” she says.

Two of the plants, in Khammam and Asifabad, have already been inaugurated, while the plants in Vikarabad, Jangaon and Peddapalli are awaiting inauguration.

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