The Union Government has decided to take up the Solar Cities programme in the 11th fiveyear Plan to promote use of renewable energy in urban areas by providing support to municipal corporations. It estimates that the demand for energy in cities is rising at the rate of 15 per cent every year and electricity utilities are finding it difficult to meet it. The government has acknowledged the need to develop a framework which will assess the existing consumption levels to prepare an action plan for generating renewable energy.

It designed the Solar Cities programme to achieve this objective and identified about 60 cities all over the country. Only Vijayawada from Andhra Pradesh figures in the list.

The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation has to prepare a master plan within one year and implement it in five years. It will identify total and sector-wise projections of energy demand and supply for the next 10 years. It will identify areas where solar energy can be used and meet 10 percent of the existing demand with solar power.

The corporation has to encourage the use of solar power for water-heating systems, cookers, steam-generating systems, drying systems, refrigeration, airconditioning plants, lanterns, homelighting systems, generators, streetlighting, hoardings, traffic signals, blinkers, road studs, power packs and photovoltaic applications in its territory.

The corporation has also to identify the potential sources for funding solar energy harnessing systems which could be used by the civic body and building owners.

The VMC has to set up a Solar City Cell with senior administrators and engineers. besides, a Solar City Stake Holders Committee will have to be set up as an advisory body involving corporators, local research institutions, residents’ associations, industry, corporates, NGOs, State nodal agency and others.

The municipal corporation has to organise training programmes, workshops, business meetings and awareness campaigns for the stakeholders. It will get about Rs 50 lakh from the Centre to conduct these programmes. Vijayawada city will get priority in financial assistance under various schemes for installation of solar energy utilising equipment.

Sources revealed that the new gas station, which was built on land allotted by the State government would commence operations by December this year. Owned by Bhagyanagar Gas Limited (BGL), representatives from the company reportedly have urged the State Government for allotment of an additional 2,000 square metres of land near Secunderabad. The location, at Monda Market would be utililsed to set up a City Central Station. In this connection, the United Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) committee is likely to inspect the site shortly, since the land is currently under the Agriculture Market Committee.

The company will supply the CNG to various parts of the city through gas pipelines from the City Central Station. While permission for laying around 170 km pipes has already been sought, the company sought permission for laying an additional170 kms of gas pipeline from Shameerpet to various parts of the city. Meanwhile the concerned District collectors have been asked to look into the issue.

The BGL informed that as many as 12 more new filling stations would be established by March 2010, while the APSRTC would be asked to come up with an action plan to convert its fleet into the CNG mode.

The Transport Department has already taken up the issue with concerned agencies about the standardisation of CNG kits.

Company officials noted that in the first phase from Shameerpet to Hyderabad via Medchal Depot, the company would be able to give connectivity to Medchal by March 2010.

The company is also proposing to set up a Booster Station Facility at Hakeempet Depot, to be commissioned around March next. In this regard, they have urged the APSRTC for induction of CNG buses at Hakeempet by March 2010.

As far as the other depots are concerned, connectivity would be made as the pipelines progresses from Sikh Village towards Hyderabad and the pipelines would be laid to cover all the RTC depot in the Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

Meanwhile, the gas company requested the APSRTC to provide lay out drawings of Medchal, Cantonment and Hakeempet Depots as RTC is preparing to procure and induct CNG buses for above three depots.