Harnessing Solar energy, Options for India

electrification, assuming a solar solution is feasible for 75% of them, the number comes to about
40,000 villages. In Table 14 one can see that a total investment today of `114 billion will be enough
to meet household- and village-level electrification. This is less than half of the overall budget under
the RGGVY and about 6% a of the overall investments expected in the solar space over the next
decade.
Table 14: Total Investment Required to meet basic Solar needs of 40,000 Villages
Households
SHS model
Solar lanterns
System
Number
10.5
million
10.5
million
Cost/system
(`)
Total cost
(`billion)
7,177 75.36
1,600 16.80
Subtotal for households 92.16
Public works for 40,000 villages
Solar street lighting (10/village) 400,000 23,100 9.24
Solar drinking water pump ( 1/village) 40,000 210,000 8.40
Lighting system community buildings
(2/village)*
80,000 60,000 4.80
Subtotal for the community 22.44
Total investment for providing basic
amenities
Note: *Assuming 200W per building at `300/W for systems with battery.
2. Solar-PV-based Irrigation Pump Sets
114.60
Almost 70% of India’s population depends on agriculture either directly or indirectly. While 44% of
the 140 million sown hectares depend on irrigation, the rest relies on the monsoons. 24 Irrigation,
therefore, is essential for good crop yield. Most electrical consumption in this sector goes towards
operating pump sets for irrigation. In 2006–7, India’s agricultural sector accounted for 22% of the
total electricity consumption, up from 10% in the 1970s. 25 There are about 21 million irrigation
pump sets in India, of which about 9 million are run on diesel and the rest are grid-based. 26
Grid electricity for agriculture in India is provided at very low tariffs – in most cases, flat rates are
charged based on the ratings of the pump. 27 This is largely due to logistical difficulties faced with
metering and charge collection. But this practice of providing electricity to farmers at highly
subsidised rates has led to increasingly high consumption patterns and widespread use of inefficient
pumps across the nation. Also, pumps of lower ratings are used to power applications requiring
higher power. These factors, among others, have led to an invidious irrigation–energy nexus. Apart
from this, limited and unreliable supply of grid electricity has led to farmers’ extensive dependence
on diesel for water pumping.
a A total of `2,000 billion worth of investments are expected towards the National Solar Mission.
Solar Photovoltaic Applications CSTEP | Page 74