Several intellectuals and citizens of Patna have pledged to offer the rooftops of the buildings they own for installation of solar panels.
The initiative, a brainchild of Centre for Environment and Energy Development (CEED), is an attempt to urge the government to come up with a programme to convert “each house into a power house”.
About 30 prominent institutions from Patna have pledged to offer 45 lakh square feet of their roof space which can potentially generate over 30 MW of solar power.
State energy minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav has supported the campaign, saying that clean source of energy was the need of the hour.Noted economist and ADRI member-secretary Shaibal Gupta said solar energy was essential for Bihar’s growth.
He urged the government to come up with schemes to involve common people in the initiative. Anand Kumar, mathematician and founder of Super 30, said solar energy was an engine that would drive the country’s economy.
The campaign has so far received a good response from eminent citizens of Patna. Apart from Anand Kumar and Shaibal Gupta, Dr Amulya Singh, Dr Ajit Pradhan, artist Meenakshi Jha Banerjee, social activist Sudha Varghese, dolphin man R K Sinha and mayor Afzal Imam have also supported the campaign.
By Baishakhi Dutta
