HDFC Life and Milaap Foundation together have come up with an initiative #DiwaliBonus

Diwali is the ‘festival of light’ and the single biggest festival in the country. The entire country is filled with lights - diyas are lit everywhere and lights are kept on through the night to welcome Lakshmi - the Goddess of wealth and prosperity into our homes. Diwali is a festival where even the darkest corners of the country are lit up. But what after?

The truth is that despite all the progress we have made technologically, there are still areas in the country that do not have the basic modern necessity of light and electricity. Due to poor and irregular power supply, thousands of Indians still have to live in darkness that affects their daily running, especially at night.

So this Diwali, HDFC Life has tied up with the NGO Milaap Foundation to help raise funds, so we can bring light to these powerless villages. Milaap has identified villages in the states of Orissa and Tamil Nadu, where the need for light is both intense and immediate.

The idea is to provide solar lamps to these villages - lamps that charge during the day and provide bright light during the night. These solar lights are easy to carry, easy to use and take almost no maintenance cost. Most importantly, these lights do not depend upon the power supply at all. No more will children have to study by candlelight, and no more will the village folk be restricted in their activities by the lack of light.

However, this is not an easy proposition. Each solar lamp costs between 1500 and 2000 rupees and the funding needs to come from somewhere. That’s where HDFC Life comes in. As one of India’s largest and most recognisable financial institutions, HDFC Life has taken it upon themselves to help raise funds for this noble cause.

HDFC Life went into one of the villages - Pachaimalai village, Sengattur Forest, Tiruchirapalli Dist, Tamil Nadu and spoke to the people there about their problems with electricity and the way they celebrate Diwali there. Using this resulting film, they hope to be able to get enough Indians to donate to this cause online, via a special website they have created for the cause - www.diwalibonus.com

What’s more, for every contribution made by a member of the public, HDFC Life has promised to step in with an equal, matching donation. This means, if you were to make a donation of Rs. 100 (which is the minimum donation you can give), HDFC Life will put in another Rs. 100.

Through this campaign, HDFC Life hopes to provide a brighter future to places that see almost no light other than in Diwali day. Let us all join this movement and do our part to ensure that the people of this village don’t have to wait for another Diwali to see light.