Emulate Bhutan in electric transport, suggest experts

SHIMLA: Even as Himachal is in the process of acquiring environment friendly electric buses for plying on the Manali-Rohtang route, experts and environmentalists feel being an energy surplus state, there is an immense potential for complete switch over to electric transport like Bhutan.

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 23

Even as Himachal is in the process of acquiring environment friendly electric buses for plying on the Manali-Rohtang route, experts and environmentalists feel being an energy surplus state, there is an immense potential for complete switch over to electric transport like Bhutan.

“Having a large hydro-base with ample surplus power, Himachal, which has a topography like Bhutan, could consider switching over to electric transport,” said Amit Kumar, Senior Director (Social Transformation) at The Energy Resource Institute (TERI). He today spoke on “Clean Energy for Sustainable Future” at a seminar organized by State Council for Science, Technology and Environment in collaboration with TERI.

He said Bhutan, which experimented with four REVA electric vehicles for five years to assess their success in hilly terrain, has decided on a complete switch over to electric transport.

“Bhutan transport is totally clean energy based and they thought of switching over to electric transport. They were apprehensive about the success of REVA since their main towns of Thimpu and Paro are hilly like Shimla. However, the trial on the four vehicles, including one driven by the King of Bhutan himself, dispelled any apprehensions” he elaborated.

Incidentally, it is on the directions of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that Himachal has placed an order for supply of electric buses to be plied on the Manali-Rohtang route to save the ecologically fragile area from environmental degradation.

The buses to be supplied by a Chinese company Gold Star will be supplied within the next three months.

Kumar stressed the need for harnessing the relatively cheaper clean energy sources like solar, wind, geo-thermal and biomass. He said a major electricity transition was taking place in India.

Inaugurating the seminar on “Energy: Sustaining a Green Future” Additional Chief Secretary Tarun Kapoor stressed the need for developing mechanism where all buildings being constructed are energy efficient.

He said considering harsh winters in Shimla and many parts of the state, having solar harvesting is essential and steps must be taken to make a beginning.