Himachal Pradesh lights up rocky villages with solar power

Remote rocky villages of Himachal Pradesh, where snowfall often damages electricity transmission lines for days and breathing kerosene fumes is the only option, are coming out of darkness with the government installing solar lights for individuals and community places. Also it is providing solar-run pump sets, cookers and lamps across the hydropower surplus state. Ram Singh, a villager in the remote Pangi Valley, told IANS over the phone that they had been literally living in darkness every winter. "As electricity remains snapped for days or even weeks with the onset of heavy snowfall, the kerosene lamps are the only option for every villager," he said.