Guwahati: Oil India Ltd's Urja- Fuel Efficient Clean Energy project has created 20 entrepreneurs from the tea worker community, engaged in making innovative chullahs in the project area, under the Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship's livelihood mission.

The project was implemented by IIE with technical help from ICCO, a development organisation. Altogether 3,000 beneficiaries in six tea gardens of Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts were provided with less smoke-emitting chullahs or wood-burning stoves with chimneys to provide smoke-free kitchens and health and economic benefits for the tea garden women, while reducing the environmental impact caused by cutting down trees for firewood.

Moreover, 20 local youth from the tea worker community were provided training to make these stoves.

A valedictory function was held on the IIE premises on Monday in the presence of OIL executive director (HR&A) Pranjit Deka, IIE director Abhijit Sharma, IIE Centre of Industrial Extension (CIE) head Sriparna B. Barua and officials from IIE, ICCO and representative beneficiaries of the six tea gardens.

The CIE head, who leads the Urja project, said, "Most of these beneficiaries are from the lowest-income category with a monthly average income of less than Rs 3,500. This project also helped 20 tea garden youths to develop as entrepreneurs with skills in chimney making through training and capacity building as part of our livelihoods mission."

On OIL's CSR programme, Deka said, "OIL provided 3,000 free customised chullah chimney units to the households. This was the first time that the especially prepared chimney was installed in the kitchen of the beneficiaries, helping to create a smoke-free environment. This unit helped in the reduction of cooking time, kitchen air pollution and most importantly led to less consumption of firewood generally used by the tea garden workers."

The project included the workers of six tea gardens of Tinsukia and Dibrugarh district, namely Balijan, Mukalbari, Thanai, Nalani, Baghjan and Dighalturrung. The project started in May 2017 and concluded in April this year.

Sharma said, "There needs to be more focus on sustainable economic growth through clean energy solutions by the collaborative efforts of OIL and IIE in the most backward tea garden areas of Assam."

OIL is also sponsoring a happy home solar project to supply solar energy to 470 households in remote areas which have not been connected to the electricity grid.