“Earlier, my electricity bill was Rs.12,000 a month. Now, it has come down to zero. Thanks to five windmills and 22 solar power panels that tap 8 kW energy a day,” says Koshy Vaidyan of Thondappurathu at Kaviyur.
It was the ever soaring power bills that had prompted this 64-year-old Gulf-returnee to think of installing a wind turbine in his courtyard as a source of back-up electricity, two years ago.
Frequent power disruptions and the allegedly delayed services of the Kerala State Electricity Board had forced him to fully depend on non-conventional energy sources. Presently, they generate 8 kW (20 units) of power a day against the average requirement of 16 units. His 1.10-acre residential plot faces the vast Kaviyur Puncha (paddy land), a good wind resource.
Mr. Koshy told The Hindu that the total installation cost of the windmills and panels was Rs.23 lakh. Round-the-clock power supply was the advantage whereas the 32 costly maintenance-free dry cell batteries (each costs Rs.20,000) with a five-year guaranteed life was the disadvantage, he added.
This 64-year-old Chemistry graduate had been running his own sound system rental business in Bahrain for several years. He decided to settle down in Kaviyur to enjoy a quiet life by the countryside and owns organic farms in a total of 10 acres spread across Kaviyur and the adjoining Eraviperoor villages.
He is happy supplying vegetables and fruits, except coconuts, free of cost among friends and relatives. He has permanently employed, accommodation included, seven workers in his farms.
