Assembly complex to go solar

As part of the Smart City project, solar panels are being installed at 5 govt. buildings

Solar panels on top of the Kerala Assembly complex in Thiruvananthapuram.

The Assembly complex may soon have lighter power bills with the installation of solar panels under the Thiruvananthapuram city Corporation’s Smart City project.

A 395-Kilowatt solar power plant will serve the main block, housing the Assembly hall, as well as the administrative block. Speaker M.B. Rajesh will inaugurate the solar power plant on Tuesday, in the presence of Corporation Mayor Arya Rajendran and others.

As part of the project, solar panels are being installed at five government buildings in the city, at a cost of ₹3.2 crore. The installation of panels have also been completed at the Government College for Women at Thycaud, the Public Library at Palayam, and the Government Central High School at Attakulangara.

The Kerala University Library in Palayam is also in the list, but the work will begin only after approval from the University Senate. According to project officials, the work can be completed within a week once it is approved.

The total cost for the project across the five locations, including the Legislative Assembly, is ₹3.2 crore, with a total power generation capacity of 607 Kilowatt. Smart City officials say the savings in power costs annually from across the five buildings will come to around ₹50 lakh, with a considerable reduction in carbon footprint too.

“We have installed a grid-tied solar power generation system here. So, the demand will be first met from the power generated from the solar panels. Only when it cannot meet the demand will power be drawn from the Kerala State Electricity Board connection. In the Assembly, the solar power system will be sufficient in normal times, but when the Assembly sessions are convened, the complex runs in full load capacity and hence only a percentage will be met from solar, and the rest from the conventional KSEB line,” say project officials.

Before installation at the various locations, the team has looked at various criteria including the structural stability of the building and the possibility of trees in the vicinity blocking out the sunlight.