New Delhi: A conversation with Devang Joshi, founder of Rudra Solar Energy makes one truly believe that India will become the superpower in the solar energy sector and the dream of Aatmanirbhar Bharat of Prime Minister Narendra Modi will become a reality soon. He is a visionary social entrepreneur. His passion for empowering the rural economy, his love towards research and development, his foresightedness in the sector including his concerns towards bringing about a real change in society make him a truly inspiring entrepreneur of the country.
What makes him a visionary social entrepreneur is that the products developed by his company are changing the lives of people in every possible manner, thereby scripting a new chapter for the country in solar energy proliferation. Rudra Solar Energy is his brainchild and he deserves to be called a visionary because Devang Joshi started speaking about the importance of solar energy way back in 2006 when the majority of people were not familiar with this renewable energy.
A dream come true
For Devang Joshi, his achievements today are nothing short of a dream come true. “I was dreaming about taking the solar energy to the communities and using the renewable energy to help the masses when I was pursuing my engineering education. I wanted to bring down our dependency on the fossil fuels like LPG. This is how I started my dream journey. Initially, I worked for two years to get experience before launching my own solar firm- Rudra Solar Energy,” he explained.
Making a difference
One of the greatest threats faced by humanity is climate change. Fossil fuels are blamed for this crisis. There is a fear that the sea level may increase by several meters in a few decades. And also many important cities across the globe are likely to submerge. Adding to this, climate change resulted in variations in the weather. The drying of farm products also has become a big challenge. However, the latest technologies are not made accessible to the rural people who really are impacted by climate change. Rudra Solar Energy is making a big difference by reaching out to the people predominantly in tier-II cities, rural areas, etc.
Challenges fought
Today mega solar energy parks are proposed in many places by the government. However, when Joshi ventured into the sector there were huge challenges to be tackled, apart from the lack of awareness. Transmission was one of the major challenges that made solar energy expensive. Keeping this factor in mind, in 2006 Joshi proposed decentralized solar thermal products and implemented them. Being one of the reputed and trusted brands and OEM in the solar thermal product range. The company developed a number of solar products and applications.
“Everything was done for the cause of the society. I wanted to take the technology towards the communities,” he recalls adding that today they have a range of solar products from cookers to dryers, desalination units, water heaters, ovens, and other specially developed products.
Rudra- Nothing like others!
One of the unique features of the Rudra Solar Energy company is the Research and Development in the solar energy sector. But which is helping the company scale new heights every day. The R&D unit of the company is continuously engaged in product improvisation and innovation. The company has its own in-house high-tech automated test facility for solar thermal equipment. The company has also joined hands with many state and central universities, besides research institutes for testing and research activity.
Solar dryers
One of the important solar products of the company is solar dryers. These dryers are in a true sense a rare, unique gift to the farmers and also allied service providers. In the post-harvesting period, drying the grains is an important part of the farming activity. But which helps in preserving the quality of the crops. Today due to the unseasonal rainfall, drying crops and even fish becomes a challenge.
The company has developed nine kinds of solar dryers that suit various products. They can be used to dry vegetables, dairy products (production of milk powder) woods, fish, and also in textile industries for drying dyed garments. Solar Cabinet Dryer (precisely-engineered solar food dryer), Solar Tunnel Dryer (which is ideal for drying farm products like Ginger, Garlic, kassava, Carrot, Jackfruit, etc), Solar Herb Dryer which can be used to dry the medicinal herbs under controlled environment, Industrial Solar Dryer which is beneficial for the industries, Solar Tent Dryer, Solar Conduction Dryer, Solar Vegetable Dryer, and Solar Fish Dryer. All these products are pocket-friendly, highly efficient, and the best in quality.
Cooking range
Solar cookers developed by the company are also very unique. From family cookers, community cookers to camping cookers, 11 different types of cookers have been developed by the company. “They can bring down the LPG use substantially,” says Joshi. Solar Box Cookers for families, Solar Domestic Parabolic Cookers, SK 14 Solar Parabolic Cookers, Solar Parabolic Community Cookers (3 square meters), Solar Community Parabolic Cookers (4 square meters), Solar Panel Cookers, Solar Camping Cookers which are best suited for the various types of camps, Solar Indoor Community Cookers, 6qm Parabolic Cookers, Scheffler Cooker Solar Disks, and Solar Steam Cooking are available. The company has also developed solar ovens that can be used to bake food and remove moisture in industrial setups.
Today, Rudra products stand tall as a testimony to one man’s dreams of making a change in society.
A step that Joshi took towards realizing his dream of making India self-reliant in solar technology and products has yielded rich dividends. And also he is looked at as one of the change-makers of the country.
Kudos to Devang Joshi for dreaming big and reaching the ‘sun’!
