From Silicon Valley to tribal heartland!
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday will fly to Khunti, the land of tribal icon Birsa Munda, to inaugurate country's first solar-powered civil court, and Dumka, the Santhal heartland, to launch Mudra bank scheme.
Modi is arriving to the tribal heartland, four days after he emphasised India’s commitment to realise the vision of 175 GigaWatts of clean energy by 2022 at roundtable on renewable energy with top energy CEOs and experts in Silicon Valley. The Jharkhand example on green power had also been mentioned by the Prime Minister at the US meet.
Incidentally, Khunti happens to be highly-affected district with Naxal activities where the police find it difficult to serve summons and call witnesses in order to bring outlaws to justice.
Brainchild of Justice DN Patel, when he was acting Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court in 2014, the roof top power plant is capable of producing 180KW of power of which only 64KW would be needed for the civil court to run. The remaining 116KW of surplus power would be supplied to the collectorate situated next door.
Justice Patel said that he found that due to irregular power cuts, at least 7-8 times in a day, the district courts are not running to their efficiency. “The DG set was there but it had its own problem, adding to huge diesel consumption and air pollution,” he pointed out.
“The second reason was that under e-court phase-II floated by the Central Government, there is a provision for equipping courts with solar energy,” he added.
“So, harnessing the solar power was the only option. Soon thereafter, he discussed the issue with the State Government which immediately approved the plan with a timeframe of six months. And now, Jharkhand has set an example to be followed by other states,” he said. “Also, it was part of the Digital India programme, which covers e-court among others,” he said.
Justice Patel, a science graduate, made it sure that it was commissioned before the timeframe, four months and 22 days to be exact. “The trial run of the plant began on September 12 and since then the supply from conventional sources is zero,” he said, overwhelmed with joy of creativity.
And the project is cost effective too. “The 180 KW plant, set up with an investment of Rs2.21 crore, will generate uninterrupted and constant power for 25 years and thereafter with diminishing efficiency for next 15-20 years. If we calculate the cost keeping in view the minimum 25 years' longevity, it comes to Rs73, 660 per month and since the court will be using only 68 KW, the investment will come around Rs36,000 only,” he pointed out.
“Also, the plant will not be affected by Monsoon vagaries. Once fully charged, the panels will produce electricity to charge batteries, which are equipped to retain charge for a week,” he pointed out. On holidays or when court is closed extra power will be exported to grid, he added.
The power produced would light up 390 tube lights, 325 fans, 35 computers, 35 printers, five ACs and 50 sodium vapour lights to be used at night to illuminate the court campus.
He said that he will propose the Chief Justice to equip the judges’ bungalows, and other official residences which are guarded by security guards 24x7. Also, he will propose to illuminate the courts located in remote districts, like Godda and Sahibganj, which face frequent power cuts, with solar energy, he added.