Rooftop solar programme launched in Bhaluka, energy minister hopes load shedding will fall before summer

Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud has inaugurated the Domestic Rooftop Solar programme in Bhaluka, Mymensingh. Speaking as chief guest at the inaugural ceremony in the Bhaluka Upazila Parishad hall room on Friday (30 October) noon, he said the government is working to resolve the country's power and gas crisis. He expressed hope that load shedding in the Mymensingh region will come down before next summer.

At the inauguration of the programme being implemented jointly by Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL) and Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund Limited (BIFFL), the minister said the previous Awami League government celebrated claims of hundred percent electrification but in reality took no effective initiative to solve the power problem.

He said the necessary infrastructure for power and gas transmission was not built in Mymensingh division either, so people of the region have long suffered power and gas crises. The current government has taken initiatives to solve the problem, he said.

In the minister's words, the Domestic Rooftop Solar programme will encourage people to use solar power on the roofs of residential buildings. Alongside meeting local electricity demand, it will play a positive role in tackling the country's overall power crisis.

At the same time, expanding renewable energy and environment-friendly power generation will make it easier to achieve the government's targets, he commented. He sought everyone's cooperation in implementing the government's plans to solve the country's power and energy problems.

In the programme's initial phase, battery-backed solar power systems have been installed on the roofs of two residential buildings in Bhaluka. Among them, a 20 kilowatt-peak system was installed at local MP Fakhr Uddin Ahmed's home and a 5 kilowatt-peak system at local resident Md Sohel Rana's home.

Power Division Secretary Mirana Mahrukh chaired the event, where Mymensingh-11 (Bhaluka) MP Fakhr Uddin Ahmed attended as special guest.

IDCOL's acting managing director S. M. Monirul Islam gave the welcome speech. The institution's Head of Renewable Energy, Md Enamul Karim Pavel, made a presentation on the programme.

BIFFL chief executive S. M. Anisuzzaman and Economic Relations Division Joint Secretary Md Ashfaqul Amin Mukut also spoke at the event. Concerned government officials, IDCOL and BIFFL officials and invited guests were present.

Notably, the programme is an initiative to expand solar power use at the residential level across the country. By creating and expanding opportunities to use solar power on household roofs, IDCOL and BIFFL are working to increase renewable energy use and spread an environment-friendly and sustainable energy system.