Valsad firm makes solar cooking possible in Ladakh

Valsad-based company Gadhia Solar, maker of solar steam cookers, has supplied solar steam cooking systems to soldiers in Ladakh, making it the first company in the country to do so.

The company has installed a solar steam cooker system with a capacity to make 1,000 meals a day, which would feed 500 soldiers. Prior to this, the army kitchen at this base was using nearly 50 kg of liquefied petroleum gas and 70 litre of diesel daily for cooking.

The system has been installed at a cost of Rs 14.64 lakh, of which a 40 per cent subsidy was provided by the natural resources and environment ministry and 35 per cent by the Centre.

The solar steam cooking system has been pioneered by the company with technical assistance from HTT GmbH of Germany and funding from GATE/GTZ, also of Germany.

The company is also planning a solar crematorium to be piloted at the Muni Seva Ashram at Vadodara where the solar concentrator would be able to reach temperatures between 800 degrees celsius and 1,000 degrees celsius.

Started by Deepak Gadhia and his wife Shirin, the company has received private equity funding from UK-based GeoEnergy, which has picked up a 50 per cent stake. It earned 5,500 tonne of gold standard carbon credits, which was sold to the Ministry of Environment (BMU) of Germany.

With the state government offering up to 75 per cent subsidy on the installation of a solar steam cooking system, other companies including GACL Vadodara, GACL Dahej and GSFC Vadodara have placed orders with the company.

Gadhia Solar has also installed its cooking system at the Brahma Kumaris' ashram at Mount Abu. This apart, its has installed at organisations in Germany,Nepal, Malaysia, Tanzania, and would soon set up one in Kenya.

Another initiative of the company is the creation of the first smokeless village in India where the whole village of Bysanapalli near Chittoor cooks on 26 solar cookers and 23 biogas plant. The company had achieved this feat in co-operation with Non-Conventional Energy Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh Ltd and the Ministry of Non-convention Energy Sources and micro-financing support from the NGO Intersol of Austria. Around 20 more villages have evinced interest in the project.