Centre to create ‘Model Solar Village’ across the country

To qualify for the scheme, villages must be designated as revenue villages with populations over 5,000, or 2,000 in special category states. The ministry explained that the selection process is competitive, with villages evaluated based on their distributed renewable energy capacity installed six months after being identified as potential candidates by the District Level Committee (DLC)

Hyderabad: The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has launched a new initiative ‘Model Solar Village’ to develop model solar villages across the country.

Under this initiative, one village in each district with the highest renewable energy capacity will receive a central financial assistance grant of Rs. 1 crore. A financial outlay of Rs 800 crore has been allocated for this component.

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To qualify for the scheme, villages must be recognized as revenue villages with populations exceeding 5,000, or 2,000 in special category States. According to the ministry, the selection process involves a competitive mode where villages are assessed on their overall distributed renewable energy capacity installed six months after the declaration of the potential candidate by the District Level Committee (DLC).

This scheme will be implemented by the State Renewable Energy Development Agency under the supervision of the DLC, aiming to transition selected villages effectively into model solar-powered communities.

The primary objectives of the model solar villages would be to facilitate access to clean and green energy in rural areas through rooftop solar systems and to reduce dependency on utilities. The programme will also promote solar-based home lighting, water systems, agricultural pumps, and streetlights.

The ‘Model Solar Village’ initiative, falls under the broader PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, which was officially introduced in February by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. With a total financial outlay of Rs.75,021 crore, the yojana aims to expand solar rooftop capacity and enable residential households to generate their own electricity by the fiscal year 2026-27.