Indian Railways’ Chennai Central railway station goes green! Gets 100% day energy requirement through Solar Power
(EPT): Eco-friendly step for Chennai Central railway station! Indian Railways’ Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. M.G. Ramachandran Central railway station in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, has installed solar panels with a power capacity of 1.5MW.
According to the Railway Ministry ,the Chennai Railway station has become the first Indian Railway station that meets the 100% day energy requirement target by solar panels installed on the platform shelters of the station.
Recently, PM Narendra Modi has also expressed his happiness over Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. M.G. Ramachandran Central railway station for being fully solar powered. A few months ago, the Railway Ministry had announced that the national transporter is committed to utilize solar energy for meeting its traction power requirements as well as become a complete ‘Green mode of transportation’.
The Railway Ministry has decided to set up solar power plants on Indian Railways’ vacant unused lands on mega scale. The use of solar power will accelerate the government’s mission to achieve conversion of the Indian Railways network into ‘Net Zero’ Carbon Emission Railway network.
The current demand of the rail network would be fulfilled by the solar power projects being deployed, making it the first transport organization in India to be energy self-sufficient. The move, according to the Railway Ministry, would help in making the Indian Railways network green as well as ‘Atma Nirbhar’.
Indian Railways has started procurement of energy from various solar power projects such as 3 MWp solar plant established at the Modern Coach Factory, Rae Bareilly. Besides, nearly100 MWp rooftop solar systems have been commissioned on various railway stations and railway buildings already.
Apart from these initiatives, one solar power project of 1.7 MWp at Bina, located in the state of Madhya Pradesh, which shall be directly connected to Overhead Traction System has already been installed and commissioned. According to the Ministry of Railways, this is the first of its kind project in the world commissioned by the national transporter in collaboration with BHEL.