Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: The Directorate of Sericulture, Government of Assam, has installed a double chamber solar hybrid Cold Storage Unit of 6 MT total capacity in Assam during 2024-25 under the World Bank-funded project APART. The recent installation at the Sericulture Department will enable the storage of silkworm eggs.
This cold storage features advanced thermal energy storage and maintains perishables in two distinct temperature zones ranging from 0 to 25 °C. Additional installations of this kind are expected to boost productivity and increase farmers’ incomes in the sericulture, horticulture, and floriculture sectors.
In this regard, Chief Minister Himanata Biswa Sarma posted on X, “Sericulture is an important activity in Assam, supporting over 3 lakh people. The state’s fine quality of silk, especially Eri and Muga, is renowned the world over. To support the sericulture farmers and give a filip to this sector, the government has recently inaugurated a Silkworm Seed Cold Storage facility in Khanapara, which can store up to 6 MT DLFs, providing a reliable storage unit.”
Most of the sericulture producing silkworm eggs requires a cooling temperature between 0°C and 25°C for safe storage and transient purposes in the absence of cold storage and related cold chain facilities.
Stand-alone solar power is one of the best solutions for operating small cold storage systems in rural and urban areas where there is a certain limit of power load. Solar energy-based refrigeration system is quite relevant to Indian weather because it is blessed with a good amount of solar energy in most parts of the country, throughout the year. This rich source of endless solar energy is the main power source for the solar cold storage unit, and it gives a 24-hour backup.
The Hybrid Cold Room is designed to be used throughout the year, even when there is no sunlight. This Solar Cold Storage Unit can be used with an alternate power source during the absence of sunlight, i.e., electric power and/or DG power.
Additionally, the maintenance is very low, and there is no running cost while operating through solar stand-alone. These characteristics make this Solar Cold Storage Unit best suited and affordable for farmers in Assam.
Also Read: Assam: Cold storage in Lakhimpur district to be operational soon (sentinelassam.com)
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