Dharoi, Danta canals to channel solar power

GANDHINAGAR: The state government has come up with an ambitious plan to make use of Dharoi and Danta canals in north Gujarat to generate power. It has drawn up a road map to cover them with solar panels to generate power."These two canals are non-perennial. Since they are below the ground level, there is no need to acquire extra land for solar paneling. In addition to this our concern about the security of these two canals will be addressed," said an official.Officials said that since the paneling is to be done over the canals, the wastage of water through evaporation will be checked. Similarly, since there is no land acquisition required, it would save money besides disputes involved in taking over of land.Sources said that the state government has also signed a memorandum of understanding with a private player in this regard during the recent Vibrant Gujarat summit held in January."Things are at a preliminary stage. The private player will come up with a detailed proposal on how he plans to go about covering these canals with solar panels after which we will together work out the modalities of the project," the official said.He said that although the power generated will be on a small scale, yet it will be a contribution to the existing power grid and can be used in the tribal areas where these two canals are located. Sources further informed that the government has also chalked out a plan to build a series of small hydro power plants on the 70 km long Ukai canal in South Gujarat. "We plan to have small power plants that would generate one mega watt to three mega watts of power. These plants are to be set up at places where there are natural falls and the water is in abundance. This power can also be used in the Jyotigram project of the state government that envisages providing 24 hour power supply to rural households," the official said.