NEW DELHI: The International Solar Festival 2024 is capturing attention with its innovative Solar City and Virtual Reality (VR) Zone, which showcase the future of solar energy. The festival, held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, features a range of interactive exhibits and displays focused on advancing solar technology and promoting a sustainable future.

Among the standout attractions is a futuristic Solar City, where every aspect of daily life is powered by the sun. This immersive experience includes VR devices that offer a glimpse into solar parks, agricultural solar applications, and an engaging game called Solar Smash. This game takes visitors on a journey from fossil fuel reliance to a future powered by clean, renewable solar energy.

The festival's highlights also include a virtual flipbook that presents successful global solar projects, such as Modhera village, India's first solar-powered village. Additionally, the festival showcases solar water purifiers installed in various locations, including water kiosks, hospitals, schools, and residences in Tanzania, demonstrating their impact on providing safe drinking water.

Another major attraction, Solartron, offers an interactive interface that illustrates how solar energy is utilized across different countries, including India, the USA, Germany, Japan, and Australia. It highlights that India’s solar power capacity surged to 85GW in the June 2024 quarter, reflecting a 32-fold increase over the past decade.

The VR Zone, featuring Solaris, provides a 360-degree immersive experience of a clean metropolis, highlighting how advancements in solar technology are set to transform living and working environments. The Solar Smash game educates visitors on reducing electricity bills and adopting sustainable energy practices.

In addition, the festival features a sundial, an ancient device that uses the sun’s position to indicate time, and various eco-friendly artifacts that emphasize the essence of solar energy. Attendees can also explore products such as solar pumps, perovskite solar cells, indoor solar cooking systems, and battery-operated heating and cooling devices.

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