Work for solar dome installation at Eco Park to get completed within 7 months

Kolkata: The solar dome at Eco Park conceived by the West Bengal Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO) and implemented by the West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) is expected to be completed in another six to seven months.

"The uniqueness of the solar dome lies in the fact that it will be able to generate more energy than it will consume. Bridge & Roof Co. (India) Limited has already started the construction work after they were selected thorough a tendering process," a senior official of WBSEDCL said.

The dome will be 120-feet tall and integrated with grid connected solar PV power plant. It will be the first-of-its-kind in Eastern India. The total project cost is Rs 30 crore. It will house a planetarium, marine aquarium, gallery and a view point from which the visitors will have a panoramic view of Rajarhat-Newtown. The dome will act as a museum displaying various uses of unconventional energy. It will be a semi-spherical bluish structure where the ground level diameter will be 45-metre. The structure will have crystalline solar panels and glass panels, which will be connected to the power lines through a net metering mechanism.

It may be mentioned that the Energy Park situated opposite Science City had to be destroyed to provide space for the Airport–New Garia Metro project and construction of Maa flyover. It was during that time when the government decided to have a similar kind of infrastructure at another place. After many deliberations, at the government level, the decision was taken that Eco Park popularly known as Prakriti Tirtha will be the alternative place.

"We have been taking all possible measures to project New Town as a clean and green city and for raising environmental awareness. The solar dome is a step towards that direction," a senior official of HIDCO said.