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Transforming Post-Harvest Processing with Solar-Powered Milling

Oojjwal delivers affordable milling services powered by renewable energy, reducing costs and increasing income for farmers.

Oojjwal

Milling as a Service

Oojjwal is a Pay Per Use milling service. It is available for grinding flour, pulses, spices and other dried produce into edible food products. Oorja deploys multipurpose pulverisers that can mill up to 40 kg per hour of wheat into flour and serve the needs of up to 100 households. The service is charged based on weight processed. The mills are conveniently located at the farm level to help customers – mainly women – save travel time and drudgery on processing activities.

Problems Faced by Farmers

  • High market rates for milling services at diesel mills.
  • Lack of mills close to farmers’ homes, requiring travel of 5-10 km. This is an added time burden for women who are often responsible for food processing activities in the household.
  • Unreliable electricity for electric mills.
  • Coarse grind and poor quality of produce in local milling machines.

Oorja’s Solution

Oorja offers affordable solar-powered milling services to rural households. The mills are conveniently located at the farm level to help customers – mainly women – save travel time and drudgery on processing activities.

Features of Oojwal Service

Attractive tariffs up to 50% lower than market rates

High-quality pulverisers for grinding multiple products: wheat, rice, pulses, spices, etc.

Pay Per Use service that accepts cash payments

Convenient location at the village level eliminating travel time and effort.

*Tariff: INR 2 – 4 per m3 of water pumped

How We Do It?

Oorja team surveys and selects a suitable site to install solar-powered multipurpose pulverisers at the farm level, in consultation with the community

Land is leased at the village periphery. Oorja installs, commissions and tests the mill, which is installed inside a weather-proof corrugated iron housing
The pulveriser is electrically integrated with a solar pump, running from the same solar-powered PV array as the pump, when the pump is not in use.
Each mill is operated on a first-come-first-served basis by a locally hired Operator, typically meeting the needs of up to 100 households.
Vibration metres are embedded in each system to measure the time or quantity of produce milled.
Customers are charged in cash on the day of sale by the Pump Operator, based on the water consumption of each user
The Oorja ground staff take care of prompt repair and maintenance and customer service.

Why Choose Oonnati?

What makes Oojjwal stand out is its operations structure which is a Cluster model. Milling services are provided as an additional service to irrigation services. 1 mill and up to 4 solar pumps are installed per village, meeting the needs of 100 farming households.
Mills are solar-powered and share the solar PV array with a nearby pump, in order to maximise energy efficiency. Oojjwal is priced roughly 50% cheaper than diesel-based milling. It saves farmers’ time and effort as service is available locally at the village level.

Oojwal Traction

Project Completed
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districts in Uttar Pradesh
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satisfied customers
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kg produce milled
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litres of diesel avoided
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saved in fuel expenses
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last-mile jobs created
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Benefits

  • Convenient access to milling services at the village level
  • Savings of up to 50% on the market rate
  • Higher quality of milled produce
  • Saving on travel time and drudgery
  • Improved air quality and reduced carbon emissions

Testimonials

Every day, my neighbours and I used to stand in long queues at the diesel mill which is about 5 kilometres from our village. It was exhausting and time-consuming, making it hard for my family and me to process our produce efficiently. But ever since Oorja’s solar mill was installed in our village, everything has changed. We now save both time and money.
We used to grind our produce at the local mill, but it often broke down and caused delays. Although the cost was the same, just INR 2 per kilogram, the quality wasn't great. Since switching to Oojjwal milling services, we've noticed a big difference. The quality is much better, and we never have to worry about delays or breakdowns. Now, our family only uses Oojjwal for all our grinding needs.