Integrating Renewable Energy and Livelihood Sustainability: A Case Study of Decentralised Watermill Upgradation Policy in the Himalayas, India

13 PAGES (4090 WORDS) Social Studies Article/Essay
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Livelihoods have been a prime concern for rural areas in the geographically difficult mountain ecosystems of Himalayas. Watermills (Gharat) have been the lifeline of the people in these areas for time immemorial. They use water, the abundantly available Common Property Resource (CPR). The present paper deals with the watermill-based enterprise programme in Uttarakhand, India. The study collected primary and secondary data from various sources including watermill owners, household survey, FGD, NGOs, e-sources of Government bodies. The study outlines the need of the society in integrating traditional RE models in their livelihood’s sustenance. SHGs from different social strata have shown tremendous response towards managing supply chain components for the enterprise. The other side of the experiment has shown that these types of small but highly effective rural renewable energy technological interventions could be extremely useful in difficult times for the geographically difficult mountain state. The upgradation of traditional watermills coupled with SHG based social enterprise has not only sustained the upgradation of technology but also paved way for community energy needs in climate change induced disaster times as a mitigation measure. As an integrative policy such measures are important for defunct RE measures in the resource rich Himalayas.

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