Will make Panaji solar city in 2 yrs, says Sawant

Panaji: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Friday said that within the next two years, the state capital will generate 80MW of solar power.
He said that the state government has plans to install solar panels on rooftops of private as well as government buildings.
“We have set a target of two years to make Panaji as a solar city,” Sawant said.
He said that the state government has decided to declare Panaji as a solar city. “The total power requirement of Panaji city is about 80MW. If we want to make Panaji run on solar power then we require cooperation from the public,” the chief minister said.
He said the state government wants to install solar panels on rooftops of government as well as on private buildings. “If we are able to install this on every building then only Panaji can become a solar city,” Sawant said.
He said that they have suggested to casino owners and big businesses to install solar panels somewhere else and the solar power will be drawn from there to Panaji. “We want to generate 80MW solar power from panels on rooftops or where they are installed,” Sawant said.
The chief minister along with revenue minister Atanasio Monserrate flagged off a vehicle to create awareness among the citizens of Panaji over installing solar panels on their rooftops. “We will create awareness of the scheme available for installing solar panels. The Union government is giving 40% subsidy and the state government is offering 10% subsidy on benchmark rate,” he said.
Explaining benchmark rate, Sawant said that in case a person installs solar panels of Rs 1 lakh worth then the person will get benefit of Rs 50,000.
The CM said that Monserrate and the Corporation of the City of Panaji have taken the initiative to install solar panels in Panaji. “We will force new buildings which are coming up in Panaji to install solar panels to achieve the sustainable development goals,” Sawant said.
Goa Energy Development Agency (GEDA) will be the nodal agency to execute the project.