By Jinaka Srihrasha, Agriculture & Livelihood Expert, CYDA

Subbampeta is a coastal village in U. Kothapalli Mandal, Kakinada District, Andhra Pradesh. The village has approximately 450 households with a total population of around 1,800 people. Fishing is a major livelihood activity for the community, and many fishermen begin their daily travel during the early hours before sunrise. The village has a main road and several internal roads and pathways connecting residential areas with key locations. CYDA team interacted with the villagers and identified the following challenges:

Key challenges identified

• Poor visibility on internal roads and pathways during dark hours.
• Difficulty for fishermen travelling towards the main road between 2:00 AM and 4:00 AM.
• Difficulty identifying obstacles and uneven sections of pathways.
• Concerns regarding encounters with snakes, scorpions and other potentially dangerous creatures.
• Greater inconvenience for elderly people, women and children travelling during low-light hours.

Intervention

To address the community’s identified need, CYDA implemented the intervention under the HRDP Project with support from HDFC Parivartan. Under the initiative 10 solar street lights were installed  at key locations in Subbampeta village. Solar-powered lighting was selected as a practical, renewable-energy-based solution to improve illumination without relying solely on conventional electricity infrastructure.

Objectives

• Improve night-time and early-morning visibility.
• Provide safer and easier access from residential areas to the main road.
• Support fishermen travelling for livelihood activities before sunrise.
• Improve mobility and convenience for the wider community.
• Promote a sustainable, solar-powered local infrastructure solution.

After installing 10 solar street lights at key village locations, these routes are now better lit. Early-morning movement from residential areas towards the main road has become more convenient, while improved visibility helps residents identify pathways, obstacles and surrounding areas when natural light is limited. The intervention has also introduced renewable-energy-based lighting infrastructure at the community level, providing a practical response to the village’s locally identified need.

Observed Impact

Improved lighting has increased visibility along key internal roads and pathways, making it easier and safer for residents to move around at night and in the early morning. Since fishermen commonly travel between 2:00 AM and 4:00 AM, the improved lighting also supports their livelihoods by making it easier to travel from their homes to the main road. The lights help residents see pathways, obstacles and surrounding areas when natural light is limited. Better-lit routes have also increased the confidence of villagers travelling within the settlement at night. The benefits extend beyond fishing households to women, children and elderly people who need to travel within the village during low-light hours.

Community Need  →  10 Solar Street Lights  →  Better Lighting  →  Safer Mobility  →  Improved Access  →  Greater Confidence  →  Livelihood Support

The Subbampeta intervention demonstrates the value of addressing community-identified infrastructure needs through practical and sustainable solutions. The installation of 10 solar street lights under the HRDP Project implemented by CYDA with support from HDFC Parivartan has improved visibility and mobility within the village. The intervention is particularly relevant to fishing households whose livelihood activities require early-morning travel. By improving lighting along key pathways, the initiative has enabled safer movement, greater convenience, and increased community confidence.

“From darkness and uncertainty to safer movement and greater confidence — solar street lighting has created a meaningful improvement in the daily mobility and livelihood environment of Subbampeta village.”

— Merugu bhushanam, Fisherman, subbampeta Village