Collector pushes PM-SURYAGHAR solar scheme

District Collector M.N. Harendra Prasad has directed officials to speed up the rollout of the central government’s PM-SURYAGHAR: Free Electricity Scheme. The scheme aims to provide clean electricity to every household and promote solar energy across the district. Over the next three months, a special campaign will run, with weekly targets for installing solar units in homes.

On Saturday, the Collector reviewed the scheme at the Collectorate. Joint Collector Gobbilla Vidyadhari, EE Shyambabu of the Electricity Department, and other officials attended the meeting.

He noted that 4,900 self-help groups in rural areas under DRDA and around 30,000 urban groups under UCD are working on the project. He instructed officials to prepare a clear plan to ensure all eligible households receive solar units.

Officials will hold awareness sessions to guide residents through registration and bank loans. They will set targets for each mandal and ward and monitor progress weekly. A single solar unit costs roughly Rs. 2.10 lakh. Residents can take bank loans, while the central government provides a subsidy of up to Rs. 80,000.

The Collector said solar units will cut electricity bills and provide long-term savings. He also suggested producing videos of successful beneficiaries and going door-to-door to raise awareness. Furthermore, he highlighted that solar energy helps protect the environment and reduce carbon emissions.

He urged officials to make Visakhapatnam a model district in solar energy adoption. The meeting included EE Srinivas Rao, VK Naidu, Dharmaraju, Simhachalam Naidu, DEE Suman, ZP CEO Narayanamurthy, DRDA PD Lakshmipathi, DPO Srinivas Rao, and other UCD officials.