Khandel light, a registered charity, was created in June 2000 by Dr Peter Gough, following his first visit to Khandel, Rajasthan. Dr Gough formed a committee of ten volunteer Trustees, drawing together a broad range of skills and expertise. The Trustees sought to improve the quality of life in this desert region, one of the poorest in India and indeed the World.
The community currently supported by Khandel light consists of 26 villages with a total population of around 30,000, covering an area of approximately 300 square kilometers (120 square miles). This is roughly equivalent to the rural section of the North Hertfordshire District, around the towns of Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth and Royston.