Webinar: Jharkhand Rural Energy Access: Enduring Challenges in Quality, Affordability, and Billing 

Speakers: Dr. Arbind Prasad, Prof. Johannes Urpelainen, Dr. Michael Aklin, Diksha Bijlani, Rwitwika Bhattacharya, Prof. S.K. Samdarshi & Vijay Shankar Bhardwaj

Jharkhand is the biggest coal producing state in India, and yet also one of the poorest. Even as the fossil fuels extracted from its soil provide energy to the rest of the country- and abroad- its own population faces dire issues with accessibility and affordability of electricity and clean cooking, and alternative livelihood options to coal. This follow-up survey conducted in 2021 reports on the progress- or lack thereof- on indicators for access to electricity, clean cooking, satisfaction with energy services, and coal dependence in Jharkhand since the first round of survey conducted in 2019. The results highlight several important policy issues. In this webinar, we will present the findings from the study, with special focus on access for the tribal communities in the state.

To attend the Webinar, register here.

Speakers:

Dr. Arbind Prasad has over 30 years of experience as an IAS officer working both in Government of India, and the State Government of Bihar. He served as Senior Advisor (Power & Energy), Planning Commissions and Joint Secretary, Social Defence. In addition to other responsibilities, he has also served as the Chairman of Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission (JSERC). Dr. Prasad has done B. Tech. in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kanpur and Masters and Ph.D. in Management from Yale University, USA. He has several publications including on Policy for Structural Reforms for India’s Economic Development and other policy related issues.

Johannes Urpelainen is the Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Professor of Energy, Resources and Environment (ERE) at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. He is also the Founding Director of the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP). He is the Director of the Master of Arts in Sustainable Energy (MASE), a 21-month hybrid (online and residential) degree to train a new generation of experts for clean energy and climate policy. Professor Urpelainen develops and tests sustainable solutions to the problem of lacking energy access in emerging economies. His research with ISEP, a groundbreaking research initiative on sustainable energy policy, offers pragmatic but effective approaches to providing the world’s population with affordable and abundant energy at minimal environmental impact.

Dr. Michael Aklin is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh. He is also affiliated to Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and the Global Studies Cente. At ISEP, he is the Director of Energy Access and Transition. The author of two books and articles published in leading academic journals, Michaël studies how policies can address the big challenges of our time, and why they often fail to do so. From climate change to financial crises, he searches for both successes and failures in policy making, searching for clues across the world.

Diksha Bijlani is a public policy graduate from Harvard Kennedy School. She was born and raised in India, and currently works in local stakeholder engagement at one of the biggest climate funds in the world, Climate Investment Funds (CIF), entrusted within the World Bank. Her work primarily focuses on climate justice and global inequality, and she also has a keen interest and training in behavioral science and behavior change communication.

Prof. Sanjoy Kumar Samdarshi is Professor in the Department of Energy Engineering and Coordinator for Centre for Excellence in Green and Efficient Energy Technology (CoE-GEET) at the Central University of Jharkhand (CUJ), India. His research covers areas that such as energy policy, solar energy, and energy education, and his current work includes research on the power sector in the Indian state of Jharkhand. His work has appeared in outlets such as Solar Energy, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, and The Journal of Physical Chemistry.He has also been a member of Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission. He has a Ph.D in Energy from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (1992).

Rwitwika Bhattacharya is the founder of the Swaniti Initiative. Prior to working on Swaniti, a social enterprise that delivers public services to the base of the pyramid by working through governments. Bhattacharya was at the World Bank as an Associate in the Growth and Competitiveness area. She is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Master in Public Policy program and specializes in the areas of youth employment.

Vijay Shankar Bhardwaj is an Environmental Engineering graduate from Delhi College of Engineering (Delhi University) and has worked in Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Carbon Finance, Energy Access, and Livelihood domain for 13 years. Before joining World Resources Institute (WRI), he has worked with Dalkia Energy, Deloitte, Sembcorp, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and played an instrumental role in implementing the State Action Plan Climate Change (SAPCC) in Jharkhand.  In his current role at WRI, he is analyzing that how access to clean, affordable, and reliable energy can play a vital role in reducing the input cost and enhancing the productivity of livelihood units located in rural areas and help a coal-rich state like Jharkhand in the sustainable energy transition.