WISE
recently held the 8th and 9th national-level training programmes
on renewable energy for media persons at Chandigarh and Thiruvananthapuram
respectively. The Chandigarh programme held at the Mahatma Gandhi
State Institute of Public Administration, on 24–25 November 2006,
had around 25 participants from Himachal Pradesh, Jammu &
Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, New Delhi and Uttaranchal. The programme
sponsored by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE),
Govt. of India, was inaugurated by the Chairman of the Punjab
State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC), Jai Singh Gill.
In his inaugural address, Mr. Gill pointed out the need to promote
renewable energy (RE) to tide over the energy crisis, and gave
details of the initiatives taken by PSERC in this regard.
Other
eminent speakers at the programme included Punam Khaira Sidhu,
Director, Monitoring and Finance, PSERC; P Ramanna Reddy, Programme
Officer, KFW, New Delhi; Abhilakh Singh, Asst. GM, IREDA, New
Delhi; and Pranav Gadhia, Director, Gadhia Solar Systems, Gujarat.
The programme concluded with Mr. S S Sekhon, Director, PEDA, delivering
the valedictory address, wherein he elaborated the efforts of
PEDA in tapping the potential of RE technologies and called upon
the media to carry the message of RE to the masses.
The
9th media training programme was held at the Institute of Management
in Government (IMG), Thiruvananthapuram, on 12–13 December, 2006,
and was inaugurated by A K Balan, Hon. Minister for Electricity,
Govt. of Kerala. Addressing the audience of 40 media persons,
the minister said that there is an urgent need to tap RE sources.
The minister exhorted the media to play a crucial role in educating
the masses about the benefits of alternate sources of energy.
The minister also inaugurated an exhibition on RE, which was held
for the first time in the series, in which many companies from
the RE sector participated.
In
his introductory speech, G M Pillai, Director General, WISE, said
Kerala should ensure that suitable policies for development of
RE technologies are in place soon. V Subramanian, Secretary, MNRE,
who chaired the inaugural session, gave details regarding the
work undertaken by the ministry to promote RE in the country.
The guests of honour at the inaugural session included K K Vijay
Kumar, Principal Secretary, Power, Govt of Kerala; T M Manoharan,
Chairman, Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), Thiruvananthapuram;
and P S Chandramohan, Director, ANERT, Thiruvananthapuram.
Binoy
Viswam, Hon. Minister of Forests, Govt of Kerala, was the Chief
Guest at the valedictory session. In his address, Mr Viswam said
that though India's geographical diversity guarantees the availability
of various renewable sources to meet our energy needs, what the
country lacks today is the political will to make it happen. The
minister however cautioned that development of renewable energy
should be undertaken by preserving nature and maintaining ecological
balance. Well-known speakers who participated in the programme
including K M Dharesan Unnithan, Director, Energy Management Centre,
Thiruvananthapuram; C P John, former member of State Planning
Board, Govt of Kerala; Dr P K K Nair, Director, Environmental
Resource Research Centre, Thiruvananthapuram; Dr R V G Menon,
Director, Integrated Rural Technology Centre, Palakkad, etc.
