Harish Hande
Encyclopedia
Harish Hande is an India
n social entrepreneur, who founded Selco India, a solar electric light company in 1995, which over the years has lit up over 120,000 households, to emerge as India's leading solar technology firm.
Taluk (ಕುಂದಾಪುರ), Udupi District
, Karnataka
and raised in Rourkela
, Orissa
, India
.
After completing his basic schooling in Orissa, he went to IIT Kharagpur for his undergraduate studies in Energy Engineering. He then went to the U.S. to do his Master’s and later PhD. in Energy Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell
, to eradicate poverty by promoting sustainable technologies in rural India. With its headquarters in Bangalore
, SELCO
has 25 branches in Karnataka
and Gujarat. Today SELCO INDIA has installed solar lighting systems in over 120,000 households in the rural areas of these states.
Harish Hande has won the Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy 2005 and Tech Museum Award 2005. Harish has also received the world’s leading green energy award from Prince Charles in 2005. In 2007 SELCO INDIA won the Outstanding Achievement Award from Ashden Awards. The award was presented by Al Gore
, former Vice President of the United States of America. Harish Hande was named the Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2007 by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the Nand & Jeet Khemka Foundation. He was also the featured attendee and speaker at the Clinton Global Initiative 2007.
In 2008, Harish Hande was chosen by Business Today as one of the 21 young leaders for India’s 21st century. In mid 2008, India Today named him one of the 50 pioneers of change in India.
He was awarded with Asia's prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2011, also sometimes referred to as Asia's Nobel Prize, for “his pragmatic efforts to put solar power technology in the hands of the poor, through his social enterprise SELCO India”.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n social entrepreneur, who founded Selco India, a solar electric light company in 1995, which over the years has lit up over 120,000 households, to emerge as India's leading solar technology firm.
Early life and education
He was born in Handattu (ಹಂದಟ್ಟು), KundapuraKundapura
-Languages and culture :The town mainly consists of Kannadigas who speak Kundagannada, Konkanis and Tuluvas. The Goud Saraswat Brahmins who fled Goa during the Portuguese arrival in the 16th century arrived by Boat in Basrur and some settled in Kundapura and surrounding villages. These people and...
Taluk (ಕುಂದಾಪುರ), Udupi District
Udupi district
Udupi district , ಉಡುಪಿ ಜಿಲ್ಲೆ) in the Karnataka state of India was created in August 1997. The three northern taluks, Udupi, Kundapur and Karkal, were separated from Dakshina Kannada District to form Udupi district. Udupi district is surrounded by Uttara Kannada district in north, Dakshina Kannada...
, Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
and raised in Rourkela
Rourkela
Rourkela is located in the northwestern tip of the Indian state of Orissa at the heart of a rich mineral belt. It is situated about north of state capital Bhubaneswar.It is surrounded by a range of hills and encircled by rivers. One of the largest steel plants of the Steel Authority of India...
, Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
After completing his basic schooling in Orissa, he went to IIT Kharagpur for his undergraduate studies in Energy Engineering. He then went to the U.S. to do his Master’s and later PhD. in Energy Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell
University of Massachusetts Lowell
The University of Massachusetts Lowell is a public university in Lowell, Massachusetts, and part of the University of Massachusetts system...
Career
Harish Hande co-founded SELCO INDIA (in 1995), a social enterpriseSocial enterprise
A social enterprise is an organization that applies business strategies to achieving philanthropic goals. Social enterprises can be structured as a for-profit or non-profit....
, to eradicate poverty by promoting sustainable technologies in rural India. With its headquarters in Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, SELCO
SELCO (India)
The Solar Electric Light Company or SELCO India is a social venture based in Bangalore, India. The main goal of this venture is to provide reliable, affordable, and environmentally sustainable energy services to homes and businesses, especially in the rural areas...
has 25 branches in Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
and Gujarat. Today SELCO INDIA has installed solar lighting systems in over 120,000 households in the rural areas of these states.
Harish Hande has won the Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy 2005 and Tech Museum Award 2005. Harish has also received the world’s leading green energy award from Prince Charles in 2005. In 2007 SELCO INDIA won the Outstanding Achievement Award from Ashden Awards. The award was presented by Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
, former Vice President of the United States of America. Harish Hande was named the Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2007 by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the Nand & Jeet Khemka Foundation. He was also the featured attendee and speaker at the Clinton Global Initiative 2007.
In 2008, Harish Hande was chosen by Business Today as one of the 21 young leaders for India’s 21st century. In mid 2008, India Today named him one of the 50 pioneers of change in India.
He was awarded with Asia's prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2011, also sometimes referred to as Asia's Nobel Prize, for “his pragmatic efforts to put solar power technology in the hands of the poor, through his social enterprise SELCO India”.