太阳能路灯提高了印度村庄人民的生活质量

A government program in India helps provide solar-powered street lights to rural communities.
印度一项政府项目帮助为农村社区提供太阳能路灯。
Solar lighting is bringing changes to many areas, including the village of Balla, near the Himalayas in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh.
太阳能照明正在改变很多地区，其中就包括印度北部喜马偕尔邦邻近喜马拉雅山脉的巴拉村。

In the past, many villagers never left homes after the sun went down. The reason: the streets usually went completely dark at night.
过去，很多村民在太阳落山后就从未出过家门。原因是街上到了晚上通常就一片漆黑。

"We used to be scared. This is a lonely area and wild animals used to come," villager Umesh Chandra Awasthi told VOA.
当地村民优曼许·钱德拉·阿瓦斯蒂对美国之音表示：“我们过去很害怕，这里地处荒凉，经常有野兽出没。”

But life changed a lot in this rural community after solar-powered lamps were set up on Balla's streets. "Now we have a free pass to go outdoors after dark. Animals, even pigs that wandered into our gardens, don't trouble us any longer," Awasthi said.
但是在巴拉村街道装好太阳能路灯之后，这个农村社区的生活就发生了很大变化。阿瓦斯蒂说：“现在我们晚上出门有了保障。动物、甚至是闯入过我们花园的猪再也不会困扰我们了。”

The addition of the lamps is part of a government program to expand solar energy in rural areas. Most people living in rural and mountainous areas have limited access to the main electrical system.
这些新增路灯是政府扩大农村地区使用太阳能项目的一部分。生活在农村和山区的很多群众鲜有机会接入主要电力系统。

The program was launched three years ago with the goal of adding tens of thousands of solar-powered street lights. Today the lamps are found in hundreds of villages in the northern Himalayas, as well as poor, underdeveloped states like Bihar and Jharkhand in India's east.
该项目于3年前启动，目标是增加数万盏太阳能路灯。今天，喜马拉雅山脉北部以及印度东部贫困欠发达的比哈尔邦和贾坎德邦的数百个村庄都装上了这种路灯。

Nationwide about 240 million people lack access to dependable power supplies because of operational issues, inability to pay or other reasons.
印度全国大约有2.4亿人因为运营问题、无力支付以及其它原因无法获得可靠的电力供应。

Government incentives have made solar energy more appealing for local communities because of its low cost. The government pays 90 percent of the cost of the solar lights, which cost $350 a piece. People in the villages make up the difference.
由于太阳能路灯成本低廉，政府鼓励措施已经使得太阳能对当地社区更具吸引力。每盏太阳能路灯需要350美元，政府付了90%，村民补足剩余部分。

Surender Dhiman is a project officer for Himachal Pradesh's energy agency, which oversees the program. He says the lamps have become popular in villages that did not have street lighting before. He added that people are now going out after dark because they feel safer.
苏伦德·迪曼是喜马偕尔邦负责监管该项目的能源机构的项目官员。他说，这种路灯在以前没有路灯的村庄很受欢迎。他还说，人们现在天黑了也出门，因为他们觉得更安全了。

Solar lights are also popular because once the lights are paid for, there are no other costs for villagers or officials to worry about.
太阳能路灯很受欢迎的另一个原因是一旦购买之后，村民或官员就无需操心其它费用。

The lighting also helps in India's mountains, where power outages are common.
这种路灯在经常停电的印度山区也很有帮助。

"Due to frequent storms, conventional power lines often go down, and sometimes lights are out for long stretches while repair work carries on," villager Ajay Awasthi said. "Now even during outages, the solar lights keep the area lit."
村民阿贾伊·阿瓦斯蒂表示：“因为频繁的暴风雨，传统的电力线路经常会瘫痪，有时候在线路维修时也会长时间停电。现在即使在停电期间，太阳能路灯也能照亮该地区。”

With a newfound sense of security, women are now going out after dark and some mothers are letting their children go, too.
有了新得的安全感，天黑之后女性也出门了，一些妈妈也敢让孩子出门玩耍了。

"Now my children can play outside in the courtyard," said Shivani Sharma, a mother of a young son and daughter. "If they have examinations and there is no light, they can even study outside," she added.
希瓦尼·夏尔玛是一位母亲，她有一对年幼的子女。夏尔玛表示：“现在我的孩子们可以在院子里玩耍。如果他们有考试，又遇上停电，他们甚至可以在屋外学习。”

The solar street lighting is proving so popular that many people now want solar equipment where they live to light up their homes. The villagers say such equipment could especially help needy families who often keep lights off at home to save money.
太阳能路灯如此深受欢迎，很多人现在希望当地的太阳能装置能点亮他们的屋内。村民们表示，这种设备尤其对那些经常在家也关着灯省钱的家庭非常有帮助。

It remains to be seen whether government-supported housetop solar collectors will someday become a reality in Balla. For now, the villagers are happy to enjoy a new kind of freedom created by light.
政府支持的屋顶太阳能收集器有朝一日是否能在巴拉村实现还有待观察。对目前而言，村民们高兴地享受着照明带来的这种新的自由。