When people talk about women leaders, the spotlight usually falls on urban success stories. The educated professionals, startup founders, or social media “it girls.” But some of the most powerful changes are unfolding far from boardrooms and city lights. One such story comes from Rajasthan.
At a college in Tilonia, Ajmer district, grandmothers who never had the chance to attend school are learning to build solar systems with their own hands. Today, they return to their villages as solar engineers proving that it’s
When people talk about women leaders, the spotlight usually falls on urban success stories. The educated professionals, startup founders, or social media “it girls.” But some of the most powerful changes are unfolding far from boardrooms and city lights. One such story comes from Rajasthan.
At a college in Tilonia, Ajmer district, grandmothers who never had the chance to attend school are learning to build solar systems with their own hands. Today, they return to their villages as solar engineers proving that it’s never too late to learn, lead, and power an entire community.
Bunker Roy’s Barefoot College
The initiative, called Barefoot College, was started by social activist Bunker Roy in 1972. His thinking drew from the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, who argued that poverty in India could be addressed through “production by the masses” rather than mass production. This belief shaped one of the most successful energy programmes in the country.
In the 1990s, the college launched its solar engineering training with a clear idea: People in villages should be able to power their own homes. Since then, more than 250 grandmothers from 12 Indian states have completed the programme.
The training lasts six months and is entirely hands-on. After finishing it, the women return to their villages to install, repair and maintain solar systems themselves. Together, they have helped solar power more than 20,000 homes in remote areas. The model has also been introduced in several African countries.
What makes the programme unusual is who it trains. Most participants are rural and tribal women from states like Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, and Bihar. For many of them, travelling to Tilonia is the first time they have ever stepped outside their villages.
How One Training Programme Lit Up Entire Villages
The impact of the programme goes beyond training. The ‘solar mamas’ have installed around 8,700 solar units in India without assistance from urban professionals. These systems generate roughly 500 kilowatts of electricity each day. The programme has also produced about 4,100 solar lanterns.
As a result, 574 villages and hamlets reaching nearly 100,000 people have access to solar electricity. Around 870 schools in these areas have also been electrified, allowing children to study after sunset.
The work has also reached some of the most remote parts of the country. In the Himalayan region, 270 Barefoot solar engineers, including 57 semi-literate rural women, have installed 16 solar power plants with a capacity of 2.5 kilowatts each. These women have also built 40 parabolic solar cookers and 71 solar water heaters.
