Jhaps in Palghar
May 2020
Jawahar & Mokhada
Households: 500
People: 2,500
Intervention
Home Lighting
Lives Impacted
0
Homes Illuminated
0
Donor
United Way Mumbai
Grassroot Partner
Learning Space Foundation
Assessment
Mokhada, Jawhar and Dahanu are significant tribal blocks of Palghar district of Maharashtra, with nearly 92% of Mokhada’s population belonging to the tribal communities. While working with the population here, we have noticed that almost 70% of the population spend their time in the houses on their farms. In most cases, the aged stay on the farms to protect the farms. The farmlands are far away from the main villages. Though the electricity has reached some of the villages, there is no access to electricity on the farms and the lands adjoining the farms. The families that live on the farmlands face several issues like – no water for drinking or domestic use, no lights and therefore being confined to the home after darkness for safety, and no access roads. The houses are scattered from each other as they are separated by vast amounts of land and these rudimentary mud hutments are called Jhaps.
Intervention
With the support of our donor and grassroot partner, we provided 500 households in these 3 blocks, solar home lighting solutions consisting of two bulbs, a battery, a charging point, a portable solar lamp as well as an additional solar panel and lamp.
Impact
With these lights we now see a dramatic impact on their lives. A reduced dependency on kerosene for light has improved their health conditions as well as allowed for savings. We also see greater productivity in the aged and the students. Women have expressed that cooking has become comfortable in solar lights. As we have given them 2 lights, they have strategically placed it – one at the entrance of the house, or pathway to the house ensuring safety from animals and the other inside. The portable lights have given the people on the jhap the freedom to move around in the evenings. In these challenging Covid 19 times, while the villagers were then untouched by the deadly virus, Team Chirag distributed masks to all beneficiaries and our team was briefed on Social distancing norms required to ensure safety and the same was adhered to. The task of distribution took almost double the time on account of this, but was carried out with the same enthusiasm. Timing was of great essence, as it would be of utmost use during the following monsoon season.
