Punjab Chief Minister asks for 80% subsidy on solar water pumps

Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal requested the centre to increase subsidy on solar water pumps in Punjab in order to make non conventional sources of energy more lucrative and adoptable in the state.

Badal raised this demand before Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah.

During the meeting, Badal pointed out that the Centre had been providing 80 per cent subsidy of the benchmark price for solar water pumps as central assistance till 2004, but had reduced it to 30 per cent and urged the Union Minister to restore the earlier subsidy available to farmers.

In addition to this, the Chief Minister asked Abdullah to introduce inverters and battery backup systems in existing solar water pumps to enable farmers to utilise their existing pumps instead of purchasing new motors, which was not financially viable for them.

Solar water pumping systems are used in India for fulfilling irrigation and drinking water needs.

The advantage is that no fuel or electricity is required, which in turn results in lower costs of operation.

Under Phase II of JNNSM, target for deployment of 25000 solar pumps by the end of FY 2017 has been envisaged.¹

Reference-

MNRE, ET

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