Madhya Pradesh: Indore civic body plans to issue green bonds to raise Rs 250 cr for solar power plant

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): In a first, the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) plans to list green bonds as a public issue to raise Rs 250 crore for setting up a 60 mega watt (MW) solar power plant, an official said on Friday.

The power generated at the solar plant will be used to pull water from Narmada river in Jalud village of neighbouring Khargone district and supply it to Indore, Divyank Singh, the chief executive officer of Indore Smart City Development Limited said.

The Madhya Pradesh government had given a nod to the IMC's green bond policy and efforts were initiated on Friday to get the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI) clearance for the project, he said.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Indore on Pravasi Bharatiya Divas on January 9. We will try our best to have his presence during the listing of green bonds," Singh said.

Apart from Indore, people from other parts of the country can invest in the eight-year duration bonds and earn attractive returns.

Indore, which has bagged the tag of the cleanest city in the country six consecutive times, has a population of 35 lakh and is largely dependent on Narmada river for its water needs.

According to officials, the IMC has to foot a heavy bill of Rs 25 crore every month to bring water to Indore from Jalud village, which is 80 km away, and the solar power plant will help cut the expenditure.