Bus to promote solar power

New Delhi: For the next 20 days, a “solar bus” will tour various localities in Delhi and demonstrate how rooftop solar panels can run an entire household.

The bus, called “Solar Comet” — a unique house on wheels lit up by power saving LED bulbs and fitted with mobile charging points, a mixer grinder, an air cooler, a refrigerator, and even an air conditioner — was flagged off by Greenpeace on Monday on the occasion of World Environment Day.

Despite a solar policy, which was made last year by the Delhi government, the response rate from the public in residential sectors has been low. The idea behind the solar bus is to create awareness among Delhiites about how solar panels can run these appliances and thereby make more people adopt these. “There is a lack of awareness. In our initial talks with RWAs, we discovered that there are several myths about rooftop solar panels that need to be busted. There’s a widespread belief that rooftop solar panels require very high capital investment. However, with the benefits that have been offered by the state and the Central government, it’s not a problem anymore,” said Ms Pujarini Sen, climate and energy campaigner, Greenpeace India. In the next 20 days, the bus will tour across the city, interacting with various Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs). A few identified locations are Alaknanda, East of Kailash, and Vasant Kunj. Ms Sen added that the campaigners will determine more locations as per requests from the RWAs.