Solar parks will be set up near Escom substations: George

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: In a major thrust towards the use of clean and green energy initiatives, the Energy minister on Wednesday chaired a meeting with officials to set up solar parks near all the Electricity Supply Companies (Escoms) substations and IP Feeder Solarisation across the state.

“Energy plays a significant role in the state’s progress and must be conserved most effectively. The use of solar energy in rural areas with ease of installation and a long service life make solar technology increasingly popular,” he said.

George said the implementation of these projects would enhance localised power generation, thereby leading to efficient fulfilment of electricity to the farmers during the day time.

Of the five Electricity Supply Companies, Bescom, Cescom and Hescom have already identified the land to set up the solar parks.

And the remaining Electricity Supply Companies (Eescoms) are in the process of identifying the land.

On the sidelines, the minister also held another meeting with the solar-powered irrigation pump sets (IP) manufacturers to explore the feasibility of increasing the solar pump sets installation among farmers in the state.

He said solar-powered irrigation pump sets (IP) will ensure an uninterrupted power supply to the farmers and bring down the dependence on conventional sources of power.

The solar water pump set scheme was launched in the state and implemented from 2014-15 for the 5hp category with funding from the Ministry of New Renewable Energy (GoI), Government of Karnataka and beneficiary contribution.

Further, the solar pump set scheme is continued under PM-KUSUM component-B 2019 in the state. A total number of 4,369 solar pump sets have been installed in the state by the state Energy department.

Under the PM Kusum Scheme, individual farmers are provided financial support to install standalone solar agriculture pumps of up to 7.5 HP for the replacement of existing diesel agriculture pumps/ irrigation systems in offgrid areas where grid supply is not available.

Pumps of a capacity higher than 7.5 HP can also be installed. However, the financial support is limited to 7.5 HP capacity.

Gaurav Gupta, Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Karnataka, Energy & Infrastructure, Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Managing Director Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Ltd, Rudrappaiah Karnataka Renewable Energy (KREDL) Managing Director, Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Managing Director, Bescom Managing Director Mahantesh Bilagi and senior officials from other Electricity Supply Companies were also present.