No component of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) scheme installed in the Assam

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: Projects under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) Scheme have not been able to benefit the farmers in Assam, as the different components of the project have not been implemented to date.

The PM-KUSUM scheme, under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, was launched in March 2019. The scheme provides for the de-dieselization of the farm sector and enhancing the income of farmers. Two agencies, namely Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) and Assam Energy Development Agency (AEDA), were given the responsibility of implementing the scheme in the state.

Under the scheme, a central government subsidy of up to 30% or 50% of the total cost is given for the installation of standalone solar pumps and also for the solarization of existing grid-connected agricultural pumps. Further, farmers can also install grid-connected solar power plants up to 2 MW under the scheme on their barren or fallow land and sell electricity to local distribution companies (DISCOMs) at a tariff determined by the state regulator.

According to information by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, there are three components—A, B, and C—of the scheme to be implemented in the state. Component A provides for the setting up of 10 MW of Decentralized Ground or Stilt Mounted Grid Connected Solar or other Renewable Energy based power plants by the farmers on their land. The implementing agency is APDCL. However, to date, not a single such power plant has been set up.

Under Component B, sanction was given for the installation of 4,000 Standalone Solar Agriculture Pumps in Assam, and the implementing agency is AEDA. But not a single such pump has been installed in the state. Component B of the PM-KUSUM scheme is a programme that helps farmers in off-grid areas to install solar-powered irrigation pumps to replace their diesel pumps.

Under Component C of the scheme, sanction was given for Individual Pump Solarization or grid-connected solar power pumps. As many as 1,000 such pumps were sanctioned for the state, and the implementing agency was AEDA, but not a single such pump has been installed. Feeder Level Solarization is provided under Component C, but there was no sanction for the installation of such solar pumps in Assam.

The PM-KUSUM Scheme allows inter-se transfer of quantities between Component-B and Component-C. All three components of the scheme aim to add solar capacity of about 34,800 MW across the country by March 2026 with fully central financial support of Rs. 34,422 crore.

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