The Chandigarh administration is set to develop it into a solar city with an aim of increasing the use of non-conventional energy.
A meeting in this regard was held under the chairmanship of the adviser to the UT Administrator, Pradip Mehra, where the representatives of The Energy and Resources Institute (Teri) gave presentation of the master action plan to be adopted for transforming Chandigarh into a solar city. The draft report submitted by Teri has recommended energy efficiency measures of 20% for both residential and commercial sectors. The project will be funded by the Centre with a matching grant by the administration or the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation, whichever takes up the project.
Keeping in view of the ever increasing power demand of Chandigarh and reducing the pressure on the conventional energy sources, the adviser asked the officials to initiate procedures for the formal adoption of the project. He plans to write to the GoI to double the quantum of subsidy already made available to other states for the same, so that it could by used for sending incentives to general public for attracting and encouraging them to adopt solar panels. Once the project takes off the city will become a model solar city deriving substantial percentage of its energy consumption through renewable energy sources and implementing other energy efficiency measures, added the adviser.
The officials in the meeting were further apprised of the amended building byelaws according to which all the commercial establishments and institutional buildings in Chandigarh will have to install solar water heaters with in a period of one year. However, for the residential areas, new buildings will have to install solar water heaters; in case of existing buildings any demand for increase in FAR will be permitted with a mandatory provision of installing of solar water heaters.