The Delhi Legislative Assembly on Sunday became the first legislature in the country to be powered entirely by solar energy, following the commissioning of a 500-kilowatt rooftop solar power plant.
Alongside this, the Assembly launched the National e-Vidhan Application (NeVA), marking a shift towards paperless legislative functioning.
The two initiatives were inaugurated by Union Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, who called the Assembly’s transition a model for sustainable and digital governance. “This is not just an infrastructure upgrade, but a shift in institutional values,” he said, adding that the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs will provide all possible assistance to the efforts and initiatives of the Delhi Legislative Assembly in this regard.
Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta emphasised that the solarisation of the Assembly is a cornerstone in a broader institutional shift towards sustainable and digital transformation.
“The present Assembly building was constructed in 1912 and was home to the country’s first Parliament,” Gupta said.
Highlighting the balance between tradition and progress, he remarked, “Virasat aur Vikaas saath chalega (Legacy and development go together).”
Gupta added that the solar power plant, installed on the rooftop, is expected to reduce the Assembly’s monthly electricity bill by around Rs 15 lakh, or approximately Rs 1.75 crore annually. The savings, he said, would be redirected to developmental work.
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It will also potentially generate surplus electricity through net metering.
The NeVA platform, developed under the Centre’s “One Nation, One Application” initiative, will be fully implemented from the upcoming Monsoon Session.
A successful trial run was conducted with MLAs ahead of the inauguration. The trial offered firsthand experience of the digital interface, which includes smart delegate units with microphones and voting panels, RFID/NFC access, multilingual support, real-time document access via iPads, an automated AV system with HD cameras, and a secure, power-backed networking environment.
Tomorrow’s schedule
The House will also see the introduction of the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Bill, 2025, by Education Minister Ashish Sood.
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Chief Minister Rekha Gupta is also scheduled to table the Finance and Appropriation Accounts for 2023-24, which will present the financial position of the national capital.
Gupta will also present two audit reports from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG): one on state finances for 2023-24 and a separate report on the welfare of building and construction workers in 2022-23.
Sood, who also holds the Power portfolio, will also lay the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission’s annual accounts and a notification on Green Energy Open Access regulations.