Six more months to install solar panels

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 25

Giving a major relief to owners of properties, the UT Administration has decided to extend the deadline for the installation of solar power panels by six more months. A formal announcement in this regard will be made soon.

Sources said the UT Administrator had given his nod for the extension as the Administration had received a good response from residents for the installation of solar plants.

The Ministry for Renewal Energy has announced incentives and has increased the subsidy for the installation of solar panels.

The sources said the decision for another extension had been taken so that left-out residents could avail of the benefits announced by the ministry. The UT has already made it clear that those who fail to install solar plants will get notices from the Estate Office.

Before this, the Administration had extended the deadline in June for three months. It had earlier extended the deadline for the second time in November 2018 for six months. The UT Administration, in a notification issued in May 2016, had made the installation of rooftop solar power plants mandatory in properties measuring 500 sq yard and above and group housing societies.

Sources said of 7,600 residential, commercial and industrial units measuring 500 sq yard and above, around 6,500 had installed solar panels.

The Chandigarh Renewal Energy, Science and Technology Promotion Society (CREST) is providing subsidy to residents to install solar panels. The Centre had selected Chandigarh to be developed as a model solar city and had set a target of installation of 69 MW solar plants, both in residential and government buildings, by 2022.