Centre allocates ₹800 crore to develop model solar villages across India, ET EnergyWorld

New Delhi: The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy on Monday notified the guidelines for the ‘Model Solar Village’ scheme under PM-Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, allocating ₹800 crore for development of solar villages in every district across India. Each selected village will get ₹1 crore to strengthen its solar energy infrastructure.

The initiative aims to set up one Model Solar Village per district to promote the adoption of solar energy, enabling these communities to meet their energy needs independently. To qualify for the program, villages must be recognized revenue villages with a population of more than 5,000 or 2,000 in special category states.

According to the ministry, the selection process will be competitive and will be based on installed renewable energy capacity (RES) within six months of the announcement of potential candidates by the District Level Committee (DLC).

The top performing village in each district in terms of installed RE capacity will be provided with central financial assistance of ₹1 crore. This scheme will be implemented by the State/UT Renewable Energy Development Agency under the supervision of DLC with the aim to effectively transform the selected villages into model solar communities.

The initiative is part of the larger PM-Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, approved by the Government of India on February 29, 2024. The scheme, with a total financial outlay of ₹75,021 crore, aims to increase rooftop solar capacity and enable households to generate their own electricity by fiscal 2026-27, thereby contributing significantly to India’s renewable energy targets.

Published on 12 Aug 2024 at 16:20 IST

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