Meghalaya Government to Invest Rs 100 Cr for Solar Electricity Generation

SHILLONG: The Meghalaya government will be investing Rs 100 Cr towards the production of electricity by renewable means under the Chief Minister’s Solar Mission in the state.

The chief minister, Conrad Sangma on Monday announced that the paperwork related to the Chief Minister’s Solar Mission has been finalised and that they hope to publish the same in the month of July itself. He also mentioned that an amount of roughly Rs 100 Cr will be spent from the side of the government in this regard. This investment will have multiple components according to the chief minister.

A component of the funding will be dedicated towards the government subsidy. Another will be for the loan component and the third will b for the individual beneficiaries. This division has been done with the aim of maximisation of benefits from the subsidy to the citizens of the state. The technology used for the project will also be very basic in nature with only panels, batteries and inverters in play said the chief minister.

The chief minister mentioned that the system used for the mission will be very stable. He mentioned that the battery will take over in case of the failure of the electrical supply. The batties will be charged via the solar panels.

Recently tne of India's foremost research-driven biodiversity conservation organisations, Aaranyak, installed 10 solar street lights in seven villages identified as human-elephant conflict (HEC) areas in the West Garo Hills district. Solar lights have been installed in Borogobal, Photamati, Kharsengdap, Bondukmali, Darengsigre, Bordubi, and Jamdangre villages. "Unwarranted face-offs between wild elephants and human beings, which may turn fatal, often occur in hotspots of human-elephant conflicts (HEC) in the darkness of the night. Such face-offs contribute to the worsening of the HEC situation in a particular area. Solar street lights provide an effective way to prevent such human-elephant confrontations and thereby help mitigate the conflict," Aranyaks said in a statement. The biodiversity conservation organization's assigned team conducted a survey to identify the areas based on elephant movement patterns and installed solar street lights in these villages inhabited by indigenous communities such as Garo, Rabha, Bodo, and other local people.

Also Read: Solar lights installed in human-elephant conflict-hit villages

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