September 3, 2012 (TSR) – Delhi will soon join the list of solar cities. Recently, the New Delhi Municipal Council floated tenders inviting proposals from consultants for the solar city project. Officials say a consultant will be appointed soon.
“We are in the process of appointing a consultant for the solar city project. For this project we have got all the necessary approvals from the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE). The consultant will get six months to prepare the master plan for the solar city,” said Amit Prasad, spokesperson, NDMC.
The main aim of the solar city project is to bring down the total non-renewable energy consumption by 5%. “While preparing the master plan, the consultant will take into account the expected increase in power consumption over the next 10 years. We plan to put up solar panels for water heating and generation of electricity,” said an official.
Once the master plan is ready, it will become mandatory for all buildings in the NDMC area to install solar panels. The civic agency is mulling of directly using the electricity generated from the solar panels in all its buildings. “Instead of storing it in batteries, we will connect the electricity generated from solar panels to the main electricity supply. This will also bring down the load on the grid,” said an official.
“We had a pre-bid discussion with some of the consultants who have applied for the project on Tuesday. The consultants will prepare a master plan proposal after studying the group situation. In Delhi, we don’t have much land, so we have to make good use of the rooftops. The consultant will also work out a budget for the project,” said an NDMC official.
The civic agency has received Rs 50 lakh for the project from the MNRE. Once the master plan for solar city is ready, the civic agency will submit it to the ministry for final approval. Officials are hopeful that the work on the project will start by next year.
