French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated a 100-megawatt solar plant built by the French company Engie in Uttar Pradesh’s Mirzapur. The power plant, which is the largest in the state, was built under the International Solar Alliance programme at a cost of around Rs 500 crore, NDTV reported.

Macron visited the prime minister’s constituency of Varanasi on the third day of his four-day visit in India. The two leaders also took a boat ride together from Assi to Dashaswamedh Ghat and visited the Deen Dayal Hastkala Sankul in Bada Lalpur, a trade facilitation centre for handicrafts.

India and France co-hosted the first International Solar Alliance summit in New Delhi on March 11. The International Solar Alliance is a treaty based on inter-governmental alliance of 121 sunshine-rich countries that lie fully or partially between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Their adoption of solar energy is expected to help reduce the use of fossil fuels and combat climate change. Sixty countries have signed the agreement to join the alliance.