With over 100 rooftop solar panels, Manyachiwadi village in Maharashtra’s Satara district has become the state's first to run entirely on solar power, enjoying uninterrupted electricity and standing as a shining example of clean energy transformation.
For years, Manyachiwadi village in Maharashtra’s Satara district was a place where the sun dipped behind the hills and left behind a world shrouded in darkness.
The residents lived in the shadows of erratic power outages and hours of pitch-black nights, with only torchlights and the flicker of lanterns to guide their way. The hum of diesel-powered generators was a constant reminder of their dependence on forces beyond their control.
But this August, Manyachiwadi awakened to a different dawn. As the sun rose, it no longer just warmed the earth beneath their feet — it became the village’s lifeline. The people of Manyachiwadi had captured the sun’s light, channeling it into the heart of their village through 102 rooftop solar panels.
That’s when Manyachiwadi became Maharashtra’s first village to run entirely on solar power.
The village, with a population of 420 people, now generates all the electricity it needs, marking a big leap forward in the region’s transition to clean energy. The village’s solar-powered transformation means zero electricity bills for residents, and its streets, public services and homes are now bathed in reliable light, day and night. Even the anganwadi is lit with the glow of the sun’s gift.
Also Read: Solar energy brings a shining solution for Assam’s villagers
This triumph is not merely the product of government intervention or corporate benevolence. It is a story of resilience and vision, shaped by the calloused hands of its people and the quiet, steady strength of 12 women from a self-help group who, two decades ago, dared to imagine a future where they controlled their own destiny.
In the early 2000s, Manyachiwadi was bound by the ebb and flow of power supplied by the distant Koyna river hydroelectric project. The village would sometimes endure up to eight hours of load shedding in a single day — time that seemed to stretch endlessly, especially as evening fell.
For Sangita Pachpute, one of the women leading the charge for change, these memories remain vivid.
“Back then, we would work on our farms until late in the evening,” she recalled. “But when we returned home, the streets were dark, and it was hard to even find our way.”
Street lights, few and far between, were as unreliable as the power grid that fed them. Inside their homes, women struggled to prepare meals in the half-light, and children squinted at their school books, trying to complete homework by candlelight.
It was this quiet desperation that stirred the women of Manyachiwadi into action. Huddled together in village council meetings, they spoke of their frustrations and their determination to find a better way. Their vision was simple yet audacious: to harness the power of the sun.
Also Read: Hanging solar fences mitigate human-elephant conflicts in Kerala
They began to save, each woman tucking away Rs 100 a month, year after year. By 2008, each woman had saved Rs 9,600 — a small fortune in a place where money didn’t come easy. They pooled their resources, contributing Rs 4,500 each to install solar systems in their homes. It was a bold investment in their future, one that would ultimately free them from the grip of the unreliable grid.
The partnership with a Pune-based solar company brought the village’s solar dream to life. With each home equipped with a solar panel, a battery and two 20-watt light bulbs, Manyachiwadi’s long nights of darkness began to fade. Trained local youths ensured that the solar systems ran smoothly.
The impact was undeniable. From 2010 to 2013, the village slashed its electricity expenses by 70 percent, reducing its monthly bill to a fraction of what it once was. The village was until then paying up to Rs 65,000 a month to Maharashtra State Electricity Co. Ltd (MSEDCL).
“After we adopted solar energy, our expenses dropped to around Rs 20,000,” village sarpanch Ravindra Mane said.
Yet the villagers did not stop there. They worked toward their ultimate goal: complete energy self-sufficiency.
“We still relied on traditional electricity for heavy appliances. We were determined to go completely solar,” Mane said.
In 2024, that dream became reality. The rooftop solar systems installed across the village now generate about 1,500 units of electricity a year — more than enough to meet the village’s needs.
In a remarkable twist, Manyachiwadi now supplies its surplus electricity to the MSEDCL in exchange for the power it occasionally draws from the grid.
Also Read: Solar power a money-spinner for women spinning eri silk yarn
“We’ve covered all our power needs, and we won’t have to pay a single rupee for electricity,” Mane said. The once-faltering village now glows with a newfound energy — both literally and figuratively.
Manyachiwadi’s journey toward the light has not gone unnoticed. The village has been showered with accolades, including a Rs 50 lakh prize given under the state’s Majhi Vasundhara competition and the prestigious Adarsh Gram Award, presented by the then Indian President Ram Nath Kovind in 2018.
“About half of our electricity came from solar energy in the past, but we were always working toward a 100 percent shift,” said Mane.
Today, that shift is complete, and Manyachiwadi stands as a model of what can be achieved when a community comes together with a shared purpose to become self-reliant, reduce their environmental footprint, and improve their quality of life. Now the village leaders are looking to the future, calling on the government to replicate their model in other villages and even urban areas.
”Our village may be small, but our story can inspire others. We’re lighting the way for others to follow,” Mane said.
As the sun sets on Manyachiwadi each evening, the lights remain on — proof that this village, once cloaked in darkness, has found its place in the sun.
Also Read: Tribal dairy farmers prosper with ‘solar-irrigated’ fodder
The lead image on top shows a house with rooftop solar panel at Manyachiwadi village in Maharashtra’s Satara district. (Photo by Akansha Deshmukh)
Akansha Deshmukh is an independent investigative journalist with a rich background in uncovering the intricacies of crime, scams, corruption, and political affairs.
