CONCEPT – KUSUM SCHEME

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 CONCEPT – KUSUM SCHEME

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• What it is: The Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (KUSUM) is a farmer-oriented solar power scheme that will allow setting up grid-connected solar plants in rural areas and off-grid solar pumps.
• Details: It involves decentralized solar power production of up to 28,250 Megawatt (Mw) over five years.

1. It will boost farmers’ income by allowing them to sell additional power to the grid through solar plants.
2. The government plans to incentivise farmers to run solar farm water pumps and use barren land for generating power for extra income up to Rs 60,000 per acre every year.
3. It will also have provisions for solarization of tube wells and lift irrigation projects.

• Objectives: The KUSUM scheme has multiple objectives.

1. Water security to farmers through reliable Solar power + Water conservation
2. Utilization of degraded land of farmers
3. Additional income to farmers by selling surplus power to DISCOM
4. Promotion of decentralized Solar power generation
5. Reduction of burden of subsidy to agriculture sector

• Details: The PM KUSUM Scheme was launched by MNRE on 08.03.2019, with three components. Total 25,750 MW capacity to be created by the year 2022. Central financial support of Rs.34,422 Cr.

1. Component A: 10,000 MW of Grid Connected Solar or any other RE Plants (500 KW to 2 MW capacity)
2. Component B: 17.50 lakh standalone Solar Agriculture Pumps (up to 7.5 HP)
3. Component C: Solarisation of 10 Lakh grid-connected Agriculture Pumps (up to 7.5 HP)

• Background: As a part of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), India has committed to increase the share of installed capacity of electric power from non-fossil-fuel sources to 40% by 2030. So, a scaling-up of solar power target from 20,000 MW of Grid Connected Solar power Projects to 1,00,000 MW by 2022 is being done.

1. While Large Scale Solar power generation projects are being installed to achieve the ambitious target, decentralized Solar energy and other RE generation plants of up to 2 MW are also being developed.
2. Such plants near sub-stations may be developed, preferably by farmers, giving them an opportunity to increase their income by utilising their barren and uncultivable land for solar or RE based power plants.
3. Cultivable land may also be used if the Solar plants are set up on stilts where crops can be grown below the stilts and sell RE power to DISCOMs.
4. We can replace Agriculture Diesel pumps with Solar Water pumps and Solarise Grid connected Agriculture pumps. At present, over 3 crore agricultural pumps are installed in India, out of which nearly 1 crore pumps are diesel based. So, there is a need to provide energy to these pumps through solar energy.
5. The new Scheme has provision for the decentralised renewable energy plants, Solar agriculture water pumps and solarisation of existing Grid connected Agriculture pumps.  
6. Target for 2019-20 – Component A:1000 MW / Component B:1,75,000 solar pumps / Component C:1,00,000 pumps (solarisation)

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