Lack of access to modern forms of energy in the rural areas is a major barrier to inclusive growth of the country. Large numbers of households use kerosene for cooking and lighting requirements. MNRE has envisaged to give a major thrust to off-grid solar power applications in areas where grid has not reached, or the areas where electricity supply is poor. AEDA plans to focus on Solar off grid generating systems, solar home lighting systems and various other forms of solar based heating/cooling/thermal applications in domestic, commercial and industrial segments, in line with the MNRE targets.
Solar lanterns are increasingly finding applications in the rural areas for lighting purpose with key features such as LEDs, mobile charging, battery back-up etc. However, the prices of such lanterns continue to be prohibitively high for the rural population and thus out of their reach. Solar lanterns can be immensely useful, particularly for children’s study besides household and other economic activities. They have a huge potential to replace current use of kerosene lamps, thus can contribute towards significant reduction in subsidy burden on this account. Solar lanterns are pollution-free and environment-friendly.
Solar Street Lighting Systems are solar powered photovoltaic modules that convert sunlight directly into electricity in the day time, which is stored in a battery and is used for the purpose of street-lighting during the night.
Many organizations/agencies have been approached for getting the solar street lights installed in various parts of the country. SECI would be undertaking these projects in a competitive manner through EPC contracts. Both stand-alone and centralized PV-based systems would be implemented.
Microgrids are modern, small-scale versions of the centralized electricity system. They are very effective for achievement of community-level electrification in remote areas, using renewable energy sources and have a low carbon footprint. Microgrids generate, distribute, and regulate the flow of electricity to consumers locally. Microgrids are an idealway to integrate various renewable resources and allow for community participation in the electricity enterprise.
