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Virendra Singh Rawat / Lucknow

Espousing the cause of renewable energy, the Uttar Pradesh government has proposed to develop 18 solar powered cities in the state.

These would include Noida and all the 17 municipal corporations in UP viz. Agra, Aligarh, Ayodhya, Bareilly, Firozabad, Ghaziabad, Gorakhpur, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Meerut, Moradabad, Prayagraj, Saharanpur, Shahjahanpur, Varanasi and Mathura.

The purpose of developing solar cities is to augment solar energy generation and supplement the conventional energy pool.

In a recent meeting, UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath said power generated at solar cities will constitute 10 percent of the total power generation in the state going forward.

Besides, emphasis on increasing solar power generation is to ensure the availability of cheaper electricity to the power consumers. It will also open up new vistas of investment in the state.

The UP government has estimated electricity consumption to more than double to 53,000 megawatt (mw) in the next five years by an annual growth of 16 percent with setting up of new industrial projects.

As such, the state is giving focus on creating alternative sources of energy, such as solar power to reduce dependence on conventional thermal and hydro power generation. This will also help reduce air pollution.

“Electricity would play an important role in making the state a $trillion dollar,” Yogi underlined.

Earlier, the Yogi government had promulgated a new UP Solar Energy Policy 2022, which provides for a gamut of concessions to investors.

To promote solar energy, the state has also proposed to develop solar park in Bundelkhand region to produce 4,000 mw of solar energy on a daily basis.

Besides, green corridors will be built for the supply of solar energy to various districts of the state.

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In the first phase of solar park, solar energy will be supplied from the electricity feeder meant for agriculture as well as to supply in the nearby rural areas.

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