For many people, used plastic paint buckets are just another container to add to household waste. At best, they are cleaned and used as home decor or for storage. But for the students of Motilal Nehru College in Delhi, these buckets provide an opportunity to help households adopt renewable energy.
Since 2022, students of the college have been making and selling lamps made from used paint buckets and powered by solar energy. The initiative, Project Prabhakshay, is under student-led social entrepreneurship organisation Enactus. “The project was started in 2020 to work on solar energy-related products and we zeroed in on the Prabhaskhay lamp last year,” says Drishti Malik, who heads Project Prabhakshay. The students have sold some 100 lamps.
The design of the lamp, which was granted a patent earlier this year, comprises a small solar panel at the base of the bucket that connects to rechargeable lithium ion batteries and the light. “We are also tinkering with it to improve the circuit and maybe add sensors that turn the lamp on or off depending on natural light, to help conserve energy,” says Md Anas, product head at Project Prabhakshay. “We procure buckets from around Delhi and buy solar panels from a local shop. Transgender people with the Mitr Trust, a non-profit that works for the LGBTQIA+ community, help clean and prepare the buckets. Electricians help with circuits,” says Anas. The cost of making a lamp is Rs 200-250 and it is sold for Rs 350-450. All earnings are used for production and to pay electricians and the transgender community.
Suhani Aggarwal, marketing head at Project Prabhakshay, says the lamps are promoted through social media and awareness programmes, and are currently sold at college fairs and programmes. “We have also sold lamps at cafes and restaurants around our college,” she says.
“When I first bought the lamp, my parents did not understand its novelty. But during power cuts, it came in handy and they realised the benefit of investing in renewable energy sources,” says Mahima Chagha, a student of the college.
The team of Project Prabhaskhay now plans to scale up sales through corporate social responsibility initiatives of companies.
This was first published in the 16-31 December, 2023 print edition of Down To Earth