An interesting research has determined that solar energy – in the form of solar lanterns – has had a positive impact on Indian villagers.
The study was done by Professor Govindasamy Agoramoorthy from Tajen University and Dr. Minna Hsu from the National Sun Yat-sen University in Taiwan.
Their study looked at the benefits of solar lanterns on the livelihoods of village communities in Western India.
Most Indian villages (close to 70%) do not have access to electricity and most of these villages use kerosene for lighting. Kerosene is an expensive fuel. The team of researchers tried an experiment in which they distributed solar lanterns to the villagers. Based on their observations of the families before and after the distribution of solar lanterns, the researchers concluded that the use of solar lanterns significantly reduced the amount of money spent kerosene. In addition, the team observed that schoolgoing children were the most benefitted from the solar lanterns as these lanterns helped them study in early mornings.
