PM Narendra Modi, Emmanuel Macron crank Uttar Pradesh's biggest solar plant

Uttar Pradesh got its biggest solar power plant at Dadar Kalan in Mirzapur on Monday. Visiting French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 75-megawatt generation unit.

Modi and Macron pressed a button to crank the plant and dedicated it to the people of the state. The solar unit has been linked to nearby Jigna sub-station of Mirzapur to transmit power through the grid of UP Power Corporation Limited.

The plant will generate about 5 lakh units of electricity daily and energize about 1.5 lakh households in the state. "The solar power plant at Dadar Kalan is the first step towards making the state self-reliant in power sector through alternate energy resources to fulfill the BJP's dream of making available electricity to all in the state," said the minister Brajesh Pathak.

The unit has been built in collaboration with French solar power giant Energie Solar under the International Solar Alliance program to promote environment-friendly alternate energy resources across globe.

Built at a cost of Rs 650 crore, the Dadar Kalan plant will be expanded to 100 MW in a year's time. About 18 French engineers and 250 men worked day and night to complete the project in record 18 months.

Spread over 380 acres on the Vindhya range, it has about 3,18,600 photovoltaic cells of 315 watt capacity each.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Governor Ram Naik, French first lady Brigitte Macron were among the dignitaries present on the occasion.