The leadership challenge today is to broadbase success by rapidly transforming agriculture and rural sector.

The principal task before leaders in government, business and civil society in the next decade is to broadbase India's Success Story. It is my firm belief that India will begin to see miracle growth if we can rapidly transform agriculture and the rural sector with enabling policies, infrastructure and institutional support, and empowerment of local communities. As I peer into the next decade, I see exciting new opportunities and also major new responsibilities beckoning India.

Mukesh Ambani

Solar products growth picking up

http://chakauti-rkant.blogspot.com/
A brave new world of gadgets is coming up with a new potential in solar energy. The way growth is picking up and venture capital investments are pouring in, solar products are something you need to watch out for.

There are large number of solar products on offer: iPod chargers, emergency lights, rice cookers, lanterns, water heaters, garden lights, AM/FM radios, rechargeable fans, power fences, water pumps, etc.

Though these gadgets cost more than their conventional counterparts.  But  the upfront price can be compensated in the money saved on electricity bills. Solar products will help you survive power cuts and also have low operating costs. On customary products one needs to pay a regular amount of electricity bill (electronic water heater is usually blamed for yielding soaring bills) whereas solar products involve a one-time installation cost, leading to the cost recovery in the near future.

"The costs are falling  due to plummeting price of solar modules,"  Solar experts and producers say.  Solar modules typically accounts for 50 per cent of a product cost and its price. Further due to increasing competition, prices have dipped to R80 to 100 per watt from R200 to 230 per watt in the past year.

Solar Power in India to increase from 5 MW to 1000 MW by 2013

India is prepared to generate 1,000 Megawatts (MW) of solar power by 2013, in the first phase of the new solar power projects under Jawaharlal Nehru  National Solar Mission. This programme will place India amongst the solar power harnessing nations,  like Germany, Spain and Japan. The project is being financed by Indian Renewable Energy  Development  Agency,Power  Finance Corp. & Rural Electrification Corp. 1300 MW  solar power production is planned, out of  which 500 MW will be photovoltaic energy, 500 MW  will  be solar thermal, 100 MW individual and 200 MW will be off-grid. Under this project, 50 percent of the power  will be generated through solar photovoltaic cells and the other half will by solar thermal power. Because of the amalgamation of technologies the overall cost of the generated electricity would be less in the future.  This  will reduce the rate if both are amalgamated and when you find out after amalgamation,  the price will come just you see about  four to five rupees. India  currently  produces less than 5 MW  of solar power every year.

Solar Energy: The remote possibility for relief in Power starved Bihar

http://saurshakti.blogspot.com/

Suffering in  Bihar 

As the mercury soars high, hand fan is the only way out  in the power-starved Bihar.   People   live in the lantern age there. Electricity in towns fails regularly. In villages, it is not there at all.

All towns districts and villages are hit badly due to  lack of power. If there is power at night, it is considered a gift for the very few who have electricity connections for a few hours. Protests  against power shortage are marked by attacks on Electricity offices resulting in more power cuts.

Bihar faces a deficit of more than 1,000-1,200 MW of power a day. Bihar faces a serious power crisis due to shortage of supply from the central grid.  Bihar produces 100-120 MW a day from its two thermal power units at Barauni in Begusarai and Kanti in Muzaffarpur district. The state is dependent on central grid for power. By conservative estimates, Bihar needs 2,200-2,500 MW of power a day but gets less than 900 MW from the central  pool despite a daily allocation of 1,646 MW.


Solar Energy
http://mnre.gov.in/pdf/jnnsm-g170610.pdf

Government's Jawaharlal Nehru Solar Mission announced in January 2010  aims at a quantum leap in solar power installation in the country targeting  20,000 megawatt (Mw) of solar power by 2022.  Investment proposals over Rs 1,00,000 crore have been received by the Government.  Huge incentives offered by the government are very attractive for  business houses as the opportunities coming up are  very  large.  Last year  the government received proposals worth over Rs 1.2 lakh crore under the Special Incentive Package Scheme from solar and photovoltaics (PV) manufacturers.

To make solar power attractive, project developers have been offered many fiscal incentives, including a 10-year tax holiday for photovoltaic (PV) and thermal solar plants set up by 2020, reduced customs duty and zero excise duty on specific capital equipment, critical materials and project imports, besides loans at cheap interest rates. As per the Generation Based Incentive (GBI) programme, the Government provides financial assistance of Rs 12 per unit in case of solar photovoltaic and Rs 10 per unit in case of solar thermal power fed to the electricity grid from a grid interactive solar power plant of a capacity of 1 MW and above for a period of 10 years.  Solar equipment makers also get incentives as per Special Incentive Package (SIP), for setting up integrated solar manufacturing plants.

There is enormous potential for off-grid PV deployment in India, based on real needs and benefits, in the areas of rural lighting and electrification, for powering irrigation pump sets, back up power generation for the expanding network of cellular towers across the country, captive power generation, urban applications and highway lighting,

Solar energy utilization has just started in India, with less than 10 MW of installed capacity, though the total generation capacity is huge, 1,60,000 MW and the Mission wants to tap 20,000 MW.  The hopes are high, but  questions behind these hopes are no less. 


The basic fundamental question remains:
lack of effectiveness and efficiency of the Mission at the hands of the greedy and profit mongering elements amongst the Governments, Contractors and Business Promoter communities which have so far kept Bihar inhabitable for the past 63 years.  The lack of effectiveness and efficiency of Governments and Contractors was conveyed by the Director(RE) in the Ministry of Power of the Government of India  on August 10, 2007 in the following words : 

" This has reference to your e-mail to Secretary, Ministry of Power regarding electrification of your home villages Chakauti in Sitamarhi district.
(http://chakauti-rkant.blogspot.com/)

The matter has been got checked up. GOI has launched Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana for electrification of un-electrfied villages, intensive electrification of electrified villages and to provide free connections to BPL families. A project under the scheme has been sanctioned for the district Sitamarhi also. Chakauti village was not included under the project by the state for electrification as it was declared as electrifed earlier. However, during detailed survey during implementation of the sanctioned project, it was found that the village has got de-electrified. A supplementary project has been prepared to cover the village.

The RGGVY was for X Plan only. The proposal for continuation of the Scheme for XI Plan is under consideration of the Govt. The supplementary project will be sanctioned after approval of the scheme.

Best regards.

Yours sincerly

Director (RE)
Ministry of Power" 

The fact is that the village was never electrified, and there was no question of its getting de-electrified; no home has been electrified in Chakauti so far. Whatever "done  or undone" was only in the government's records.

   

BRIC Summit Resolution on Energy April 15, 2010

Energy 

19. We recognize that energy is an essential resource for improving the standard of living of our peoples and that access to energy is of paramount importance to economic growth with equity and social inclusion. We will aim to develop cleaner, more affordable and sustainable energy systems, to promote access to energy and energy efficient technologies and practices in all sectors. We will aim to diversify our energy mix by increasing, where appropriate, the contribution of renewable energy sources, and will encourage the cleaner, more efficient use of fossil fuels and other fuels. In this regard, we reiterate our support to the international cooperation in the field of energy efficiency.

 

20. We recognize the potential of new, emerging, and environmentally friendly technologies for diversifying energy mix and the creation of jobs. In this regard we will encourage, as appropriate, the sustainable development, production and use of biofuels.  In accordance with national priorities, we will work together to facilitate the use of renewable energy, through international cooperation and the sharing of experiences on renewable energy, including biofuels technologies and policies.

 

Additional wind power in two years in India

India will add about 9000 MW of wind power generation capacity. The country today has an installed capacity of 4,907 MW. Power generated from wind costs about Rs 3.56 per unit.
 

9,000 MW to be added by PVT. Sector in next two years

The  government announced that  the private sector will generate 9000 MW in the next two years. Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde informed Rajya Sabha that the contribution of private sector in additional generation has gone up from 4 per cent to 18 per cent since 1999.  Seven more ultra mega power projects  will come up besides the five originally planned.  Two of these projects have already begun generation. The Govt. aims at synchronising the power grids of South India from North Indian grids in 18 months. Members demanded increase in electricity generation to meet the huge shortfall of 16,000 MW.