Women associated with Chief Minister Solar Self-Employment Scheme will be named Solar Sakhi. Individuals will be trained in every district for the maintenance of solar plants. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami addressed the developers of Chief Minister Self-Employment Scheme under the Samvad program at the Chief Servant House.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami participated in the Chief Servant Samvad program with the developers of Chief Minister Solar Self-Employment Scheme at the Chief Servant House located at the Chief Minister’s residence on Thursday. On this occasion, the Chief Minister announced that women associated with the Chief Minister Solar Self-Employment Scheme will be named Solar Sakhi. Special camps will be organized in the development blocks to promote the Chief Minister Solar Self-Employment Scheme and other self-employment related schemes on a wide scale. People will be trained in every district for the maintenance of solar plants.
The Chief Minister said that under this scheme, the target of 250 MW has been achieved in the state. Work is being done towards further expanding this scheme. The source of solar energy is not only unlimited but also environment friendly. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is constantly trying to promote the use of solar energy on a large scale through various schemes. Along with schemes like Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Yojana, PM Kusum, the formation of International Solar Alliance under the leadership of India is playing an important role in increasing the use of solar energy. The Prime Minister has set a target of generating 500 gigawatts of electricity through solar energy by the year 2030. He has also set a target of making the country carbon neutral by 2070. The Chief Minister said that a new solar energy policy has also been implemented with the aim of promoting solar energy in the state. A target of 2500 MW solar capacity has been set by the year 2027. Special subsidy is being provided to promote rooftop solar plants in the state. Subsidy is also being given to the beneficiaries for setting up solar power plants through PM Surya Ghar Yojana. Under the Mukhyamantri Solar Swarojgar Yojana, a subsidy of 20 to 50 percent is being given for setting up projects of 20 to 200 kW. An additional subsidy of 5 percent is also being given to women, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe category as well as Divyangjan. Under the scheme, a subsidy of 4 percent is being given on the loan for setting up the plant.
UPCL has also ensured a guarantee of power purchase by entering into a contract of 25 years through Power Purchase Agreement. To make the entire process transparent and technically strong, the arrangements from application to allocation have been made simple, accessible and efficient through online portal. The Chief Minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is moving rapidly towards becoming a developed and self-reliant nation. Today India has established itself as the fourth largest economy in the world by becoming an economy of more than 4 trillion dollars. Through initiatives like ‘Vocal for Local’, ‘Make in India’ and ‘Startup India’, the country is moving at a rapid pace towards becoming self-reliant.
He said that the state government is also working on many important schemes to stop migration from the mountains and to promote local economy and tourism. Through the ‘One District, Two Products’ scheme, we have promoted local livelihood opportunities, while the ‘House of Himalayas’ brand has worked to give wide recognition to our local products.
During the dialogue, Shailendra Singh of Uttarkashi said that the Chief Minister Solar Self-Employment Scheme is very beneficial for the mountainous areas, due to this, barren land is also being used properly. Vikas Mohan of Chamoli said that this scheme should be promoted up to the development block level, so that people can take maximum advantage of it. Rupa Rani of Pauri said that a scheme should be made in the solar energy sector to promote women power. Ketan Bhardwaj of Champawat said that there should be a training system for the maintenance of solar plants. Principal Secretary R Meenakshi Sundaram, Additional Secretary and Director UREDA Ranjana Rajguru, Managing Director UJVNL Sandeep Singhal, Managing Director Pitkul PC Dhyani were present on the occasion.