Sharada Gaydhane, the twice-elected sarpanch of Bela Gram in Maharashtra’s Bhandara district, still remembers the concerns women would bring to her, often speaking about problems that had silently become part of daily life.
Their kitchens filled with smoke from chulhas (traditional wood-fired stove) that refused to burn clean. On the other hand, even after watering the fields, the crops no longer responded as they once did. Many spoke of frequent headaches, which they had begun to accept as routine.
As she listened, these concerns began to connect, and what first seemed like separate issues started to point to a larger shift unfolding around the village.
Instead of treating them as routine hardships, Gaydhane began working with the community to respond to what they were experiencing, focusing on changes that could fit into everyday life.
From saplings to solar panels
One of the earliest shifts came through tree planting, which gradually moved beyond a one-time activity and became part of how the village marked its moments. Weddings and festivals turned into occasions where saplings were planted alongside celebrations, and over the years, this practice slowly reshaped the landscape.
As the green cover grew, other changes began to follow, with the village starting to rethink how energy was used within homes.
Smoky chulhas, long a fixture of rural kitchens, were gradually replaced with LPG connections and solar-powered alternatives, a change that reduced indoor air pollution while also making daily cooking more manageable for women. Around the same time, solar panels began appearing across rooftops in homes, anganwadis, and the panchayat office, quietly altering how energy was consumed across the village.
With these shifts in place, attention turned to waste, which had often remained in the background but now became central to the village’s approach.
महाराष्ट्रातील भंडारा जिल्ह्यातील सरपंच शारदा गायदाने यांच्या नेतृत्वाखाली बेला ग्रामपंचायत भारतातील पहिली नेट-झिरो पंचायत बनली.
त्यांची प्रेरणादायी कथा जाणून घ्या…#SayNoToProxySarpanch#CelebratingWomenSarpanches#ISupportMySarpanchpic.twitter.com/xUlXjvUPDn
— PIB in Maharashtra 🇮🇳 (@PIBMumbai) March 12, 2026
Segregation began at the doorstep, with households sorting what they discarded, and over time, single-use plastic started to disappear from everyday use. “We also promoted waste segregation at doorsteps and achieved the vanishing of single-use plastics,” Gaydhane said, describing a process that unfolded gradually rather than all at once.
By this point, what had begun as a response to everyday concerns had started to come together as a broader way of living.
The idea of net zero, made local
The term “net zero” often appears in reports and global discussions, but in Bela, its meaning takes a more visible and grounded form that can be seen in everyday life.
It is reflected in the shade of growing trees, in kitchens that no longer fill with smoke, and in waste that does not accumulate the way it once did, showing how multiple small changes can come together over time.
Taken together, these efforts have led Bela to be recognised as India’s first net zero village, a distinction that brings together years of steady, community-led work.
These efforts also brought wider recognition, and Bela received the 2024 Rashtriya Panchayat Puraskar, marking a milestone in how climate-focused work can take shape at the grassroots level.
What stands out, however, is how each of these efforts connects with the next, with no single change working in isolation but instead building on what came before.
Leadership, and the language of change
At the centre of this process is Gaydhane’s approach to leadership, which is shaped by observation and everyday experience rather than technical language.
She said, “Waste can be converted into wealth if thought properly.”
Instead of waiting for new systems or external support, the focus remained on rethinking what already existed and finding ways to use it more effectively.
This approach also required continuity, and being elected twice ensured that the work carried forward without interruption, allowing these changes to slowly become part of daily life.
By the time Bela was highlighted at Mumbai Climate Week on 19 February 2026, this journey had already moved beyond the village, offering a way to understand how climate action can grow from everyday concerns into sustained change.
