AP Pushing Rooftop Solar Drive, Says Ravi Kumar
Ravi Kumar said the government was promoting solar installations on government offices, schools and hospitals to reduce electricity costs and dependence on imported fossil fuels
VIJAYAWADA: Energy minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar on Saturday said the Andhra Pradesh government was giving top priority to energy conservation and clean energy generation under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Participating in a grievance redressal programme at the Telugu Desam central office in Amaravati, the minister received petitions from people from different parts of the state and directed officials to resolve their issues promptly.
Addressing the media, Ravi Kumar said the state had launched a first-of-its-kind initiative to provide six lakh free PM Surya Ghar connections of 2 KW capacity to poor households. He said while the Centre has targeted one crore PM Surya Ghar connections nationwide, Andhra Pradesh alone aims to establish 20 lakh such connections.
The minister said the Centre provides a subsidy of `60,000 for 2 KW rooftop solar systems and `78,000 for 3 KW units. He added that the state government would extend an additional subsidy of `20,000 for BC beneficiaries, while SC and ST families would receive up to `1.25 lakh subsidy for 2 KW solar connections.
Ravi Kumar said the government was promoting solar installations on government offices, schools and hospitals to reduce electricity costs and dependence on imported fossil fuels. He said that despite rising power sector expenses, electricity tariffs had not been increased in the last two years, with the government absorbing the burden.
Criticising the previous regime for imposing ‘True-Up charges’ and cess on consumers, the minister said the coalition government was committed to providing 24-hour quality power supply and expanding clean energy generation across the state.
