Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, while presiding over a meeting of senior officers of Power Department here today, emphasized the need to enhance the solar power generation in the State. He said that a 32 MW Solar Power Project has been established at Pekhubela in Una district and 10 MW solar power project and 5 MW project were under construction in Kutlehar and Gagret assembly constituencies respectively. He said that Himachal Pradesh would be in a position to harness around 50 MW solar energy in the coming six months. Directions were given to the officers to expedite the ongoing solar power projects and commission these projects at the earliest besides identifying the new sites to set up solar power projects.
The Chief Minister said that the state government was also encouraging the youth to enter into the solar power generation sector and earn livelihood for themselves. These projects would be allotted to bonafide Himachali’s.
He said that the power demand was increasing day by day and keeping this in view the solar power should also be harnessed alongside the hydel power. Solar energy is a clean and renewable source, reducing carbon emission and minimizes the reliance on fossil fuels. These solar power projects also need minimal maintenance besides longer life span, said the Chief Minister.
Sh Sukhu said that climate change was the biggest challenge and green initiatives can play a pivotal role in mitigating the effects of global warming. He also reiterated the state government’s commitment to promote green industry in the State which would help in mitigating the climate change impact and would play important role in realizing government’s goal of making Himachal Pradesh a green energy State by 31st March, 2026. The government was also promoting e-vehicles in the State and it has been decided to convert the entire fleet of HRTC buses with e-buses.
Industries Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan, Principal Advisor to Chief Minister Ram Subhag Singh, Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena, Principal Secretaries R.D. Nazeem, Devesh Kumar, Amandeep Garg, Secretary to Chief Minister Rakesh Kanwar, Managing Director HPSEBL Harikesh Meena and other senior officers also attended the meeting among others.