“Agricultural Tube Wells Should be Connected to Solar Power in Stages”: Harayna CM Saini

Holding a review meeting under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthan Mahabhiyan, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini instructed officials on Friday to connect all tube wells in the farming sector of the state to solar energy in stages.
As per the official statement, CM Saini proposed to the officials that a solar power plant should be set up on about 300 acres of land in Ganni Kheda gram panchayat, near the 220-KV sub-station located in Raiwali village of Panchkula district.
Furthermore, the Chief Minister said the Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited should identify five-acre plots for the solarisation of at least two agricultural feeders in every district, where solar panels can be set up and electricity supplied to agricultural tube wells.
Notably, solar panels should be set up on vacant land at places such as colleges, the Deputy Commissioner's office, Pinjore fruit and vegetable market terminus and bus stand in the district of Panchkula.

In addition, structures with solar panels must be made accessible for social events.

Interestingly, the Chief Minister asserted that in panchayats which provide land for solar power plants, the solar panel structures should be made in a way that they can also serve as ‘Kalyanam Mandapams’, allowing the room beneath to be used for social and community functions, events and gatherings. As per the decision taken in the meeting that solar energy panels will be set up on the sheds of mandis of the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board and warehouses of Haryana Warehousing Corporation. Electricity will be generated using these solar panels and further supplied for agricultural purposes as per the demand.

Furthermore, the Chief Secretary of the Power Department, Sh. A.K. Singh told that, more than 1.58 lakh solar pumps have been installed in the state till now,  under the PM-KUSUM scheme implemented from the year 2018-19.
Apart from this, a target has been set to install 70,000 new solar pumps in the state in the financial year 2025-26, for which a budget of Rs 600 crore has been allocated.

Not only this, the Chief Minister also instructed the officials to address complaints of solar pump breakdown from those villages where such complaints are arising. He also asked the concerned officers to personally contact the farmers.