Fancy baking cup cakes on your balcony minus the cost of LPG or electricity? You sure can enjoy the cake even more knowing you have not added to carbon footprints! More so you will be harnessing solar energy that is abundant, free and a healthy alternative. All of this was made known to students of Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) at the recent awareness camp on Energy Conservation by All India Women’s Conference (AIWC), Hyderabad. They educated students on the fast depleting energy sources, why solar energy is the most feasible option, its applications and how all it requires is a change of mindset. An essay writing and quiz competition were held to drive home its importance. They were also made aware of the career prospects available in the field of renewable energy.
While students were familiar with conventional energy sources they were pleasantly surprised to learn that they can charge their mobiles with a solar charger.
They were given first hand demonstrations of lamps, solar dryers used for preserving vegetables and home made items like ‘papads’ and were given a taste of food cooked in solar cookers. “I was only aware of solar lights and am amazed to know that even food can be cooked using sunlight. This programme has shown me all the possibilities of solar energy and how it can help the current non renewable energy crisis,” said Hoorunnisa a first year student of CSE.
AIWC a nodal agency has been popularising Non-Conventional Energy since 1984. Started with the intention of educating women who are most often involved with cooking, preservation and cottage industries, AIWC is now extending the awareness programme to educational institutions, women’s groups and corporates. Farida Husain, president, AIWC, Hyderabad-Secunderabad speaker at COP XI at Poland says, “Despite plans to electrify our villages only 37 per cent of rural India is linked to the grid. Villages that have been electrified get irregular supply of electricity. Solar energy is the ideal alternative for India being both economical and renewable. However, only government incentives can generate mass usage of solar alternatives.”
