One measure adopted was to extend the Health Department’s surveillance from government health institutions alone to include private hospitals capable of treating the disease.

From a level of 22 fresh cases every single day during the months of September to November last year when the epidemic was peaking in the city, incidents of dengue have come down to between zero and two per day during the first week of January.

Identification of beneficiaries done through Gram Sabhas

The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RD and PR) Department would construct a total of 1,497 solar-powered green houses for below poverty line families in Coimbatore district during the current financial year. Work is on in 12 blocks of the district especially in villages such as Vellamadai, AS Kulam, Keeramathur in SS Kulam and Malumichampatti and Palathurai in Madukkarai. Under this scheme, Rs.1.80 lakh will be allotted for each beneficiary by the State Government, of which Rs.30,000 is for purchasing solar-powered home lighting system.

Moser Baer’s Rs. 100- crore 5-MW solar grid interactive photovoltaic (SPV) plant in Sivaganga has technology suited specifically for Indian climate

Located in the hinterland is a project that proved to be a trump card for those advocating solar power as a solution to the power crisis in the State. Spread across 65 acres in Rettai Pillai Ayyanarkoil, a tiny hamlet near Muthupatti in Sivaganga district, the 5-MW solar grid interactive photovoltaic (SPV) plant has exceeded the targets set in the planning stages, according to government and company officials.

Industries wonder whether TANGEDCO has a contingency plan in place

With power generation from windmills steadily declining over the last few days, load shedding in southern districts has increased significantly. While the pattern of volatile wind production is a recurring one, industries say the difference this time is that wind season is drawing to a close and power generation cannot be expected to increase again consistently to peak levels.

Point out volatility in power generation from windmills

With power generation from windmills remaining volatile, trade and industry bodies in the region are calling for expeditious commissioning of Rs.14,000-crore Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP). The first unit of the nuclear plant will generate 1,000 MW and a second unit with the same capacity is likely to be commissioned a few months later.

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) will be helping 365 small, marginal and large farmers in Dindigul district to implement drip irrigation. The farmers would be provided subsidy from 75 to 100 per cent of the project cost under the NABARD Watershed Programme.

S. Natarajan, Deputy General Manager, NABARD Watersheds Unit in Madurai which covers eight southern districts, told The Hindu here on Thursday that this was part of a development plan prepared by the Village Watershed Committees with the guidance of CIRHEP

Subsidy for the scheme increased by 10 per cent

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has enhanced its support to a Central Government scheme to promote solar power. To promote commercial marketing of solar accessories, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), had launched the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission with subsidy for solar lighting and small capacity photovoltaic systems, which would be routed through NABARD.

The Rural Development Department is going to undertake an Information, Education and Communication (IEC) campaign on solid waste management in rural areas of Madurai under a Central Government sche

The power authorities are actively contemplating the installation of a dedicated 400 KV power line exclusively for the transmission of electricity generated from wind mills, said A. Nachadalingam, Chief Engineer (Distribution) of Madurai Region, Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO).

MADURAI: The Central Government has come out with a renewable energy scheme that provides urban local bodies with the capacity to address the power shortage in their areas.

The entire cost of implementing this project, called