Solar panels soon to be must on rooftops

New Delhi: In order to meet the increasing power demand, rooftop solar panels will soon be made compulsory in residential areas in the national capital.

While addressing the CII Delhi State Annual Session and Business Conference, lieutenant-governor Anil Baijal said: “We will make it mandatory for cooperative housing societies to have solar panels on rooftops soon.”

The Delhi government’s power department had earlier said that it has opened the registration process for installation of rooftop solar power panels in the city, as it aims to tap one GigaWatt of green energy by 2020. A senior official said: “The registration process has been opened for city residents in the residential, institutional and social sector categories under the Delhi government’s solar policy of 2016 and Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (Net Metering for Renewable Energy) Regulations, 2014.”

Under the scheme, the Union ministry of new and renewable energy will give a financial assistance of about 30 per cent on the cost of the solar photo-voltaic plants.

The generation-based incentive (GBI) of Rs two per unit will also be given under the residential category. The Indraprastha Power Generation Company Ltd (IPGCL) has empanelled vendors for the solar photovoltaic installations.

Earlier, the L-G had directed the power department to prepare a standard operating procedure (SOP) and a roadmap for promoting installation of solar power panels in the city.

The Delhi Solar Policy, which aims at mass adoption of solar power, was notified on September 27, 2016. The highlights of the policy include a generation-based incentive for three years.

In the conference, Delhi ministers Satyendra Jain and Kailash Gahlot talked about slum development and a common mobility card for the Delhi Transport Corporation  buses and the Delhi Metro.

Elaborating on the traffic menace, the L-G said, “One of the biggest issues that the capital is facing apart from pollution, is traffic congestion.

“There are more than 77 corridors which suffer from traffic jams on a daily basis due to poor engineering and designing,” he added.