Mumbai, October 9: On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will declare Gujarat's Modhera as the 1st solar-powered village in the country. Speaking about the initiative, Jaydeep Bhai Patel, a local said that earlier he used to pay Rs 2000 for electricity, but now he is paying Rs 300. "We didn't pay anything to install solar panels," he added.

Gujarat's Modhera village is well known for the centuries-old Sun temple that was built during the Chalukya reign. Here's all you need to know about Modhera village and the solar project. Gujarat: Modhera Set to be Declared India’s First Solar-Powered Village by PM Narendra Modi.

Quick facts about Modhera village and the Solar Project:

  • The Modhera village is located in Gujarat's Mehsana district. It is about 100 km away from the state's capital city Gandhinagar. The Modhera, which is located on the banks of Pushpavati river has a geographical area of around 2,436 hectares. The Modhera village will become not only Gujarat's but the country's first solar-powered village.

  • The Modhera village has a solar power plant which is mounted in the ground. According to reports, over 1,300 rooftop solar systems with 1kW capacity have been installed on houses in the village in order to generate electricity. All the solar systems are linked to unit called battery energy storage system (BESS).

  • The solar panels installed across the houses in Modhera village will provide power to the village in the day time. Meanwhile, the BESS system will provide electricity to the whole village in the evening and during night time.

  • In order to make Modhera village, the country's 1st solar-powered village, the Central and the state government has invested over Rs 80 crore. The investment was made in two phases for the solar-development project. The state government also allotted a total of 12 hectares of area for the unique project.

  • Gujarat government said that the solar-development project will make Modhera, country's first village across the nation to become a renewable energy generator, The project is believed to help people save about 60 to 100 percent of money on their electricity bills.

After being declared as the first 24x7 solar powered village, the Modhera village of Gujarat has become country's 1st solar-powered village. The state government also said that keeping in mind PM Narendra Modi's vision of increasing the use of renewable energy in the country, they are ensuring the sustainable implementation of various welfare projects in the state.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 09, 2022 05:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).