Rural TN gets 19,000 solar powered green house

Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Friday inaugurated 19,037 solar-powered green houses for poor families in rural areas, built at a cost of `342.67 crore, through videoconferencing at the Secretariat. Till 2013-14, 1.8 lakh houses were taken under the Chief Minister’s Solar Powered Green House Scheme, which is designed to address the housing issue as well as to promote green energy.  For the current year 2014-15, `1,260 crore has been allocated  for taking up another 60,000 houses. Such a scheme is being implemented for the first time in the country.

Apart from the green houses, the Chief Minister inaugurated many school buildings, Anganwadi centres, ration shops, community cooking halls, and bridges constructed by Rural Development Department at a cost of `80.43 crore. As many as 1,523 houses built for the people living in the coastal areas under the Tsunami Reconstruction Project and panchayat union office building at Pudukottai, built at a cost of `1.54 crore were among those inaugurated by her.

The Chief Minister also launched the presentation of `1 lakh each incentive fund to 4,000 federations of Self Help Groups.  Four panchayat-level SHG federations at Pillayarnatham (Dindigul dt), Koolanaickenpatti (Coimbatore dt), Kammalapatti (Salem dt) and Chinnamattarapalli (Krishnagiri dt) received the incentive from the Chief Minister on Friday.

Besides, 30 village panchayat-level SHG federations have been selected for a cash prize of `50,000 each for making all its members literates. Of this, the SHG federations at Kodimangalam (Maudrai dt), Sethirabalapuram (Nagapattinam dt) and Chennamarareddipatti (Tuticorin dt) received the cash award from the Chief Minister.

Slum Clearance

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister inaugurated 1,502 residential tenements in a seven-storey building constructed at a cost of `90.12 crore, at Perumbakkam by the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board. These tenements are being allocated for the people living in unhygienic and objectionable places in the city on the recommendation from the Chennai Corporation.

Source: New Indian Express

India Wind Power Association moves Tribunal challenging Tamil Nadu’s move to buy thermal power

The India Wind Power Association (IWPA), a representative of wind energy producers, has launched a fresh challenge against the Tamil Nadu government’s decision to buy thermal power, instead of using available wind power, to tide over shortages. On Thursday, the association moved the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity, the appeals body, challenging an earlier ruling against it by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission. “Tangedco (the state-run power generation and distribution company) is buying from outside costly thermal power even during the windy months of May to September by backing down wind mills eight to 22 hours daily and refusing to give the ‘must run’ status to wind mills, calling it infirm power,” K Kasthurirangaian, chairman of IWPA. Infirm power is considered interruptible at a very short notice. Wind energy producers feel hard-done by the absence of a ‘must run’ status, having lost an opportunity to sell their power. Already, they have been hit hard by long delayed dues that the utility owes them.

State government officials couldn’t be reached for comments. The tussle between wind energy producers and the state comes at a time when the latter is trying to address a huge problem in the electricity sector. Tamil Nadu faces a huge shortage of power and the state-run utility is neck-deep in debt. The grouse of wind energy players, once the state’s darlings, also manifests itself at a time when the Tamil Nadu is aggressively wooing solar developers, following a plan to add 3 gigawatt of solar power in three years.

According to data available with the Centre for Wind Energy Technology, Tamil Nadu is still the leader in wind power installed capacity. It accounts for 40% of the country’s total installed capacity of over 18 GW.The tussle started in September when Tangedco sought the nod from the state electricity regulator to buy over 2 gigawatt of thermal power for 15 years starting 2013. This was over and above the 1 gigawatt or so approved end of last year.The state's plan was this: buy roughly half from outside the state from the players such as Balco and GMR and the rest from private players inside like OPG and ILF&S.

IWPA protested, saying there was enough surplus wind power available. It was also joined by Tamil Nadu Spinning Mills Association in the case. Tamil Nadu Spinning Mills is also fighting a case against Tamil Nadu over the mandatory solar purchase obligation.

Source:- ET  http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com