PATNA, Nov. 8 -- Chief minister Samrat Chaudhary has ordered the replacement of proposed 5kW solar set-ups with 20kW installations on all water towers managed by PRIs and the PHED. The move is designed to significantly enhance energy capacity and improve service delivery for rural residents. The direction came during a review meeting of the panchayati raj department that the CM chaired on Friday here. Department secretary Manoj Kumar had presented details of the proposed scheme under the chief minister Gramin Peyjal Nishchay Yojana to install 5 kW off-grid solar panels on jal minars (water towers). The presentation covered annual electricity expenditure on the schemes, implementation mechanisms, BREDA's role in execution, financial management, maintenance and monitoring, and how savings from solarisation could be utilised. Chaudhary intervened to scale up the capacity fourfold. "Proposed 5 kilowatt panels should be replaced with 20 kilowatt capacity solar panels so that local people get the fullest possible benefit from this system," he directed, asking officials to take the necessary steps. The higher capacity is expected to better power the pumps that keep the elevated tanks supplying piped water to villages, cut dependence on the grid, lower electricity bills of the schemes and free up savings for expanding basic facilities in the panchayats. Contextually, Bihar has roughly 70,000 water tanks under the panchayati raj department and over 50,000 under PHED, taking the combined figure past 1.23 lakh. In October, the state had approved a Rs 4,809-crore plan to put 5 kW solar panels on these tanks to ensure uninterrupted rural drinking water supply and reduce power-related disruptions. The CM's latest order specifically upgrades the capacity for the PRI-managed jal minars. Precise figures on how many towers already carry functional 5 kW systems and the aggregate solar generation from them statewide were not detailed in the meeting, though the focus remains on using the power primarily for pumping and channeling the resulting savings into local infrastructure and services. Chaudhary pressed for faster construction of Panchayat Sarkar Bhawans and a robust maintenance system....