Vijaykumar Desai
CUNCOLIM: Two whole years after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the country-wide Pradhan MantriKisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthan Yojna (PM-KUSUM), which subsidises standalone solar-powered agriculture pumps, the State’s 600-plus farmers have not been able to reap the benefits of a scheme that promotes pollution-free and sustainable agriculture.
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Attributing this to a lack of awareness, they said that while a few from their community did apply, the subsidy was not sanctioned due to poor overall response from the State.
Government authorities, however, are keen to put the onus on the farmers. Sources at the Department of New and Renewable Energy (NRE) and the Goa Energy Development Agency (GEDA) claimed that there were hardly any takers for the scheme as Goan farmers are hesitant to install solar pumps.
An immediate fallout of this is that not a single subsidised solar pump has been given to farmers to date, despite the state having been given a target by the Centre to install 200 such pumps during the first year of the implementation of the scheme.
GEDA, incidentally, is the nodal agency for the implementation of PM-KUSUM in the State.
Solar-powered agriculture pumps are essentially machines that convert solar energy into electricity for the purpose of pumping water into fields. They not only ensure perennial water supply to farmlands but also do away with farmers’ dependence on erratic power grid supply and pollution-causing diesel pumps.
In the meanwhile, more than 20 lakh farmers from all over India have benefitted from PM-KUSUM, which provides a 90% subsidy (60% from the Centre and 30% from the state concerned) for the purchase and installation of solar pumps.
Under the scheme, each farmer is entitled to a 7.5HP (horse power) solar pump, complete with installation and maintenance. Each pump costs Rs 3 lakh, of which the Centre contributes Rs. 1.90 lakh, the state concerned Rs 90,000 and the farmer beneficiary around Rs 30,000.
