Attappady, the bleak tribal hinterland which often hits headlines for everything from malnutrition deaths to marijuana cultivation, is now emerging as a non-conventional energy hub of Kerala.
If plans of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) go well, the rain-shadow Attappady region of Palakkad district will soon turn into Kerala’s non-conventional energy hub.
After commissioning the board’s first rooftop solar power generation facility at the Chalayoor tribal hamlet on Monday, steps have been taken to establish a large scale wind farm in one of the barren hill tracts of the region to generate 600 MW energy with the cooperation of local community and grama panchayat.
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Expected to be completed in two years, the wind farm will be the largest in the State. At present, wind farms are operating at Ramakalmedu in Idukki and Kanjikode in Palakkad. In the case of Attappady, 32 windmills are already functioning and they generate 19 MW of power.
Though these wind farms, started at the behest of certain tribal land encroachers in 2007, courted controversy, the attempt convinced the KSEB that the region has huge potential in generating wind energy. The plan is to install windmills in vacant lands owned by the government and private individuals on a profit- sharing basis.
The KSEB is now paying the cheapest tariff of Rs.3.20 for the power generated by the existing windmills in Attappady.
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The board hopes that the ongoing legal action would bring the existing windmills under the control of tribal people and the local body, thus enabling it to directly engage with them.
The rooftop solar power generation at Chalayoor is turning out to be a success. Solar panel roofs were provided to houses of all tribal inhabitants of the settlement.
As many as 400 solar panels were installed and each of them has a capability of 250 watts. These would generate 96 kilowatt of power a day and 1,53,600 units a year.
A feasibility study conducted by the board said Attappady had the potential to generate more than 1,000 MW of power in non-conventional sector.
The board is also considering planting of Jethropha in the region to generate bio-fuel energy. The district panchayat has already started work on the Koodal mini hydel project and three more mini hydel projects are in the offing.