The largest solar power plant in Punjab was inaugurated on Thursday in Bathinda district. The 32 megawatt (MW) solar power plant has been set up in 140 acres of land near Jaga Ram Tirath village near Talwandi Sabo by a private company, Welspun Renewables.
With this, the State’s Malwa region has emerged as the solar hub of South East Asia with Punjab’s largest commissioned solar power project inaugurated by Union Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Badal, also Bathinda MP, in the presence of Punjab New and Renewable Energy Minister Bikram Singh Majithia.
“Welspun Renewables has commissioned this project ahead of committed timeline,” said a company spokesperson.
Harsimrat said that Punjab was the first State in the country to work out a diversification scheme for farmers to adopt green energy ventures and develop them into green energy entrepreneurs.
She said Punjab would target development at least 15 green energy entrepreneurs per block within the next five years ensuring 10 per cent of the State’s energy requirement is fulfilled through green energy.
Majithia said that Punjab was the leading State in terms of investment in solar projects. “We have got a number of investment proposals for setting up solar power projects in the State. Farmers in Punjab can benefit by setting up their own small solar plants or by giving their land for bigger plants being set up by other people,” he said.
He said that the Punjab Government would ask companies setting up solar power plants to adopt villages where these plants are set up for the installation of streetlights. “Soon, all villages of the State would be covered by installing solar power streetlights. Even Welspun, which had set up its project in land belonging to this village as well as Teona Pujarian, would also adopt both villages for installation of solar powered street lights,” he added.