India
Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CInI), Jamshedpur is a nodal agency of the Tata Trusts and anchors the Central India Initiative of the Tata Trusts. CInI aims to transform the lives of tribal households in the Central Indian tribal belt through building knowledge and scaling up programmes in thematic areas of agricultural productivity stabilisation, forest-based livelihoods, water resource development, drinking water and sanitation, microfinance and strengthening community-based organisations. It primarily works on SDG 7 (Clean and affordable energy).
Off-grid solar irrigation pumps (SIPs) have gained momentum in the past few years, with efforts from several public-private partnerships. These pumps are a boon for small and marginal tribal farmers, and their immediate effects are reduced drudgery and recurring fossil fuel costs. SIPs have also increased cropped areas and income for smallholders. Through the EARN (Excess Energy and Redistribution Network) project, CinI aims to establish models on farmer-managed centralised PV and implement distributed load mini-grid systems. The key objectives are:
- Use of excess energy generated from solar irrigation systems to run additional equipment
- Connecting solar systems and monetising excess solar energy in real-time
Key Project Staff
Ayan Deb is a development professional with over 16 years of in-depth experience in diverse sectors in livelihoods and energy. He has worked with tribal communities and has led multiple projects, managing multi-national team members. He is currently leading the renewable energy program in Central and Western India, reaching 200,000 households across five states.
Siddharth Gahoi is Program Manager of the Energy Portfolio at the Tata Trusts. He has over 7 years of experience in the sector. He earlier worked as a Hub Manager in the company where he had developed and monitored various national water-based livelihood programs in Northeast and Central India. He is keen on testing emerging technologies, organisational development, financing and has start-up expertise with a thirst for innovative business solutions that solve social problems. He is a strong professional focused on assisting partners in managing energy adoption across programs and themes.
Dharmendra Kumar is working as Program Manager for this region at CInI. He has in-depth experience managing programs and partnerships, which he learned as a State In-charge of Tripura. He has been instrumental in the development of the Tripura State Initiative. Dharmendra manages a team of implementors in the field and has a deep understanding of the local context. He brings with him over 7 years of experience.
Bhavana Mishra is a dynamic professional with an experience of more than 14 years in the development sector. She has expertise in Social Development, Team Management and Agro Business Management which includes working with grassroots level farmers in developing market segments and large-scale operations. Bhavana manages the monitoring, learning and evaluation portfolio of the Central and Western regions.