He was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of workshop on Scoping Mission for Solar Rooftop at Hotel Trident. He said use of solar energy is the need of our time and that can save coal and water on a large scale. Besides, this availability of environment-friendly power will reduce carbon percentage on a large scale and thus save crores of rupees on economic front. The municipal corporations and municipal councils in the state should use solar energy for street lights. If we generate solar power for industry sector, it will save the environment and will not hamper the health of the citizens.
We need to minimize the use of petrol-diesel vehicles in phases and replace them with electric vehicles by creating public awareness for their use. The state government has purchased five electric vehicles on an experimental basis and soon emphasis will be laid on use of electric vehicles for government offices. Charging points for these vehicles will be set up on roads and this will benefit the citizens, Patil said.
Patil further said that the state government has given solar pumps to farmers on massive scale and this has saved the use of conventional electricity. All citizens should shift to use of solar energy besides the government offices to save the expenses and preserve environment. Solar panels are set up on 5000 public buildings and the government is testing them. So far, the government buildings have saved 39% electricity, he said.
The Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) is implementing Building Energy Efficiency Program in the state since 2017. Through this initiative 7000 ACs, 11 lakh LED bulbs, 6 lakh fans, and 14000 street lights using conventional electricity will be replaced to save 10 crore units of power, he added.
The workshop was attended by EESL Chairman Rajiv Sharma, Managing Director Saurabh Kumar, and senior officers of Public Works Department and Energy Department.
