Rajasthan Ranked First in Solar Energy

• 23 Sep 2021

Why in News

• In a recently released report of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, Rajasthan has overtaken Karnataka to rank first in the country with an installed capacity of 7737.95 MW of solar power.

Key Points

• It is worth mentioning that in the MNRE report, Gujarat has been ranked third with 5708 MW capacity, Tamil Nadu fourth with 4675 MW and Andhra Pradesh with 4380 MW.
• Despite the adverse circumstances of Covid-19, 2348.47 MW of new solar power capacity has been installed in Rajasthan in the last eight months only.
• Rajasthan has registered unprecedented progress in all areas of solar energy including ground mount, roof top and off grid in the year 2021.
• In the direction of making Rajasthan a leader in the field of green energy-clean energy, the state's Solar Energy Policy-2019 has been very important for the investors. Also, the provisions of RIPS-2019 have brought a revolutionary change in the field of solar energy in the state. Under this policy, customized investment proposals worth Rs 34,200 crore were approved in the hybrid energy sector in the state in April 2021. Most of these are related to solar energy.
• As a result of the policies to promote solar energy, Rajasthan has become the preferred destination for investors in this sector from across the country and the world. During this period, a record investment of Rs 10 thousand crores has been made in this sector.
• Considering the favourable geographical conditions of Rajasthan from the point of view of solar power generation, 142 GW of solar power generation has been estimated in the state. To achieve this goal, an effective plan has been prepared by the state government. Under the plan, an ambitious target of 30 GW of solar power generation has been set by 2024-25, which will completely change the energy scenario of the country.