The Narendra Modi government at the Center is continuously running a campaign regarding the use of solar energy. PM-Surya Ghar: Free Electricity Scheme is also being run by the government. Now we have received big support from the World Bank regarding solar energy. In an important decision, the Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank has approved financial assistance for the purpose of accelerating India’s National Solar Rooftop Program.
The National Solar Rooftop Program aims to provide clean energy to millions of homes and also create 17 lakh (1.7 million) employment opportunities in the renewable energy manufacturing, installation and service value chain. India has promised to achieve net zero by 2070 and increase non-fossil-fuel-based energy sources in its electricity mix to 60 percent by 2035.
Although there has been rapid development of solar energy on a large scale in the country, the rate of adoption of solar energy in homes is still very slow. To fully utilize this potential, the Government of India has launched ‘PM Surya Ghar: Free Electricity Scheme’ 2 years ago. Its objective is to provide incentives for installing solar rooftops in one crore rural and urban homes across the country, as well as to reduce household electricity costs and to promote local manufacturing of solar rooftop equipment.
$2 billion help for campaign: WB
Paul Prossey, Acting Country Director for India at the World Bank, said, “The World Bank has been helping India grow its solar rooftop sector for more than a decade. The World Bank has mobilized more than $2 billion to expand the solar rooftop sector in India from 500 MW to more than 27 GW of installed capacity. This new financing will help the country scale up the use of solar energy in homes, as well as strengthen the supply chain and installation. “It will also create employment opportunities in the ecosystem.”
Financial support for this program includes an $820 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), a $60 million concessional loan from the Clean Technology Fund, as well as a $10 million grant from the IBRD’s Livable Planet Fund. Apart from this, the World Bank will also raise private financing of $4.2 billion in the form of commercial loans, so that solar rooftops can be installed on homes.
“This program will transform the home solar energy market by removing financial barriers and enhancing the capacity of distribution companies, banks and vendors to provide integrated service solutions,” said Moez Cherif, task team leader of the program. “People can now install solar power systems at home with collateral-free assistance and significantly reduce their monthly electricity bills.”
PM Surya Ghar Yojana started in the year 2024
The Indian government is also engaged in promoting solar energy. “PM Surya Ghar: Free Electricity Scheme” has been launched with the aim of providing free electricity to households. This is a government scheme. The scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 15, 2024. Through this scheme, households will be given subsidy to install solar panels on their rooftops. This subsidy will cover up to 40% of the cost of solar panels.
It is believed that this scheme is expected to benefit 1 crore houses across the country. It is also estimated that this scheme will save the government Rs 75 thousand crore every year in electricity expenses.
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