After replacing power hogging bulbs with LED’s (light emitting diode), the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) in a bid to take energy efficiency to the next level has geared up to install rooftop solar plants at all municipal schools in the twin-city.
At present there are 17 structures which house 36 municipal schools imparting education in Marathi, Urdu, Hindi, Gujarati and semi-English mediums up to the X standard to 8,845 students. The cost of the solar power project is pegged at Rs. 50 lakh which will be spent from funds provided to the MBMC by the central government under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).
How the project will be implemented
The project will be implemented on a gross metering model in which the entire quantum of electricity generated will be transmitted to the grid of the power service provider. After finalizing the rates, the metered units will be subtracted from the overall power consumed by municipal properties, thus significantly cutting down on expenditure towards monthly bills and saving money spent from the civic kitty.
“Apart from the school buildings the apparatus is also being installed atop the municipal hospital in Mira Road. This will reduce power consumption and save money. These savings can be used for other useful purposes,” confirmed city engineer-Deepak Khambit. Moreover the use of renewable energy in schools will promote a greener future and encourage students to become part of change in their community.
Civic admin ensures installation does not have adverse impacts
The civic administration has ensured that the installation of these solar panels does not have any adverse impact on the school or hospital buildings to implement the highly viable and beneficial option as sustainable energy solutions amid the key concerns of climate change and global warming across the globe.
The MBMC has implemented a slew of projects-like electric buses, wet scrubber (purifier) machines at Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) powered pyres at crematoriums and mist spray cannons- in adherence to the NCAP launched by the central government under the aegis of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in 2019.
