Sheila Dikshit inaugurates one MW solar power plant in Delhi

The national capital today took a small but significant step towards production of clean and green energy when Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit inaugurated a one-megawatt solar power plant in the city.

The plant has been set up by Tata-backed power discom North Delhi Power Limited (NDPL) at the Keshavpuram.

he plant consists of more than 5500 solar photo-voltaic panels made of crystalline silicon which will absorb sunlight and convert it into electricity that will be directly fed into the main grid line of NDPL, an official of the discom said.

He said this one-megawatt plant is designed to produce 1.58 million units of electricity annually, sufficient to light more than 1000 homes.

Dikshit welcomed the initiative and stated that this is a significant step towards adopting a low carbon lifestyle to mitigate climate change.

She expressed satisfaction at the "pioneering feat" of NDPL and hoped that this initiative is followed by other companies and utilities.

Secretary in the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy Deepak Gupta said the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission has set a target of generating 20000 MW of solar power by 2022.

Delhi chief secretary Rakesh Mehta said the city has launched the 'Climate Change Agenda 2009-12' which is an ambitious plan for greening the capital and this solar plant will contribute to the government's strategy of promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency.