Where the Sun Pays Bills

A Professor's Decades-Long Solar Journey Lights the Way for Puducherry to Transform into a Clean Energy Role Model

- Debjani Dutta @Puducherry

In a quiet corner of Puducherry's Boulevard area, a modest home hides a revolutionary secret. For over two decades, Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty, a retired professor from the Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok and a globally respected energy expert, has been quietly leading the Union Territory's solar transition—long before it became policy.

Back in 2001, when solar panels were still a novelty, Dr. Mohanty installed a 900W off-grid system on his rooftop, one of the first in Puducherry. Over the years, that system evolved into a state-of-the-art 5kW grid-connected setup that now powers not just his home, but also his family's electric car and scooters. His is a household that has not visited a petrol pump in over 20 years.