Solar Lights Help in Women Empowerment

Across much of the globe, access to dependable lighting is not merely a luxury—it is a basic requirement that has direct consequences for safety, education, work, and general well-being. For women, particularly in rural and developing communities, inadequate lighting frequently constrains their mobility and opportunities. Solar lights enter the scene—a low-cost, sustainable, and revolutionary solution. These unassuming lights are accomplishing far more than simply driving away darkness—they are empowering women, light by light.

1. Safety and Security: Lighting the Path to Freedom:- For girls and women, darkness tends to mean danger. Whether coming home from work or school, using outdoor toilets, or walking down poorly lit streets, insufficient lighting heightens the risk of harassment, assault, and other dangers.

Solar street lights and motion sensor wall lights ensure safety by lighting up these exposed spaces. Solar lighting communities experience a drastic reduction in nighttime crime and harassment complaints. The mere presence of light makes women feel secure and more confident to venture out after dark.

Real Story: In rural India, women previously avoided using the toilet at night because of the fear of wildlife and harassment. Once solar lighting was provided, they were secure enough to satisfy basic needs without fear.

2. Facilitating Girls' Education
In villages where electricity is a privilege, most children, particularly girls, can't study at night. When the sun goes down, chores become urgent and textbooks get relegated. Solar study lamps and home lighting systems empower girls to study at night. 

When learning extends beyond sundown, dropout rates decrease and grades improve. Girls become more confident, and communities see the transformation towards gender equity in education.

3. Facilitating Women's Economic Empowerment
Solar lighting access increases the working hours for women who conduct small-scale businesses such as tailoring, handicrafts, or food processing. It enables them to work during early morning or late evening hours, time previously lost due to inadequate illumination.

In addition, various NGOs and social enterprises also train women to be solar entrepreneurs, educating them to install, maintain, and market solar lights. Not only do these women gain an income, but they also become change-makers for their respective communities.

Example: Barefoot College has employed rural women from Africa and Asia to become solar engineers, even those who were previously illiterate. They go back to their villages and provide hundreds of homes with solar light.

4. Health and Environmental Benefits
Before solar lights, most homes used kerosene lamps, which emit poisonous smoke and are fire hazards. Women and children, who spend the longest time indoors, are at higher risk of respiratory diseases caused by indoor air pollution.

Solar lights eliminate this danger. They are smoke-free, clean, and safe, enhancing the health status of families and lowering medical costs.

5. Reducing the Burden of Household Work
Most rural women spend hours walking to gather firewood or walking miles to recharge batteries or bring fuel for lighting. Solar home systems alleviate this by providing renewable energy at their doorstep. Time and energy saved can be redirected to self-care, education, or earning money.

6. Building Leadership and Social Status
Once women get involved with solar projects—whether as consumers, caretakers, or educators they are acknowledged and respected. It provides them with a stake in community affairs, elevates their social stature, and stimulates them to play leadership roles.

In certain locations, women-dominated solar groups take charge of the village lighting infrastructure, distribute funds, and create awareness programs. The effect spreads beyond lighting, it initiates a cultural transformation. 

Hardoll's Role in Empowerment Through Solar Lights

We at Hardoll Enterprises have a vision of developing sustainable lighting systems that illuminate homes and gardens, but also lives. We offer a vast array of solar lights ranging from pathway lights to motion sensor security lights that are energy-efficient, cost-saving, and environmentally friendly.

With the promotion of solar lighting in rural and semi-urban communities, we directly help to:

Decrease gender-based vulnerabilities, Increase girl-child education, Provide micro-entrepreneurship opportunities for women Increase self-reliance and dignity

We still collaborate with organizations, NGOs, and communities that share our vision of gender equality and green energy.

‘Prerna Ojas Program’ is an organization of joint action for ecological sustainability with a twin objective of giving clean energy to school-going children in the remote areas of Uttar Pradesh while generating income for self-help groups for women. This is managed by Uttar Pradesh State Rural Livelihood Mission and supported financially and technologically by the Ministry Of New And Renewable Energy, IIT (BOMBAY), and Energy Efficiency Services Ltd.

Conclusion: A Brighter Future, One Light at a Time
Solar lighting is an easy solution with a big impact. It doesn't merely illuminate—it brings hope, opportunity, and empowerment. By empowering women with the means to live safer, healthier, and more independent lives, solar lights are contributing to brighter futures not only for women, but for communities as a whole.

The IAS officer Yogesh Kumar, the Mission Director of UP State Rural Livelihoods Mission, said that this initiative has helped self groups to make 28 lakh solar study lamps which were distributed among students in government schools in rural areas. This initiative has helped children to pursue their studies while offering empowerment to women in Sonebhadra district. Both Nazrani and Poonam, are among the 4,000 skilled women and young girls who made and supplied solar lamps to school children in Uttar Pradesh. Some women have started shops where they sell and repair products like solar lanterns, solar flashlights, solar lamps, solar fans, solar torch, solar panels, solar power banks, and LED bulbs.

Solar lights not just save electricity, it gives livelihood too. Isn’t it? Solar energy never depletes and if you have not started investing in solar lights, now is the time. Start using solar lights and motivate others to do the same. Save electricity, save money.

News Courtesy: https://www.newindianexpress.com/thesundaystandard/2021/jun/13/solar-lamps-bring-new-light-for-women-2315400.html