Panels to be set up to pick model solar villages in Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation (TNGEC) will set up district-level committees led by superintending engineers to select model solar villages under the PM-Surya Ghar scheme.

Talking to TNIE, a senior TNGEC official said the committees will include village presidents and officials from various departments such as revenue, agriculture, horticulture and rural development as members. “We are likely to hold district-wise meetings in the first week of September to discuss this,” he said.

Only revenue villages with a population exceeding 5,000 can participate in the scheme. Besides the population, the villages will also be selected on the basis of their potential for adapting to solar energy. Each selected village will receive a grant of Rs 1 crore from the union government, a TNGEC official said.

The scheme will promote solar-based home lighting systems, solar water systems, solar pumps for agriculture, and solar street lights covering village roads and common infrastructure.