Darjeeling offices to have solar panels installed

All the office buildings at Darjeeling will soon have solar panels installed on their rooftops as the district administrative has taken up a decision to help them become self independent in producing energy.

The district administration has already started a survey in all the state government offices so that they can generate power. According to a district official, solar panels will be installed on the rooftops of all the state government offices.

The projects will be carried out by the West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) and the District Magistrate will be the nodal officer of the project.

More than 30 buildings have primarily been identified for the projects and the senior district officials have already visited various offices chalking out plans on how the project would be implemented.

According to an official of the WBSEDCL, the project would be implemented in all the districts in various phases and the energy produced by the solar panels will be used for the consumption of the building. It will not only cut the energy production cost but is also eco-friendly.

It may be mentioned that the state government has taken up a volley of projects to use non-conventional energy there, by setting up solar power plants at different installations.

In a major development in the solar power sector, the state government has taken up canal bank Solar photo voltaic (PV) project.

The project is being constructed by the state owned West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) at Haptiagachh in Uttar Dinajpur at the cost of Rs 65.88 crore.

A senior official of the WBSEDCL said that the state is pioneer in setting up canal bank Solar PV project in the country.

Three more solar PV projects having a capacity of 10 MW each is coming up at Santaldih and Chhara in Purulia, Mejia in Bankura. WBSEDCL has also taken up an elaborate scheme to set up 500 MW ultra mega Solar Parks in the districts of East Midnapore, West Midnapore, Bankura. A number of PV solar plants have been implemented in hundreds of schools in various districts.

Solar panels will be set up on the rooftop which will generate power. The work will be done in three phases. Energy that will be produced through the solar panel will also be used in the pumped storage hydro electric projects at Ayodhya hills.