The central government has approved Central Financial Assistance (CFA) of ₹531 crore for 553 energy providers in Rajasthan who are contributing to energy security by setting up solar power plants under Component-C of the PM-KUSUM scheme. According to a senior official from the energy department, this amount will soon be disbursed into the bank accounts of respective energy providers by the Ajmer and Jodhpur electricity distribution companies (Discoms).
Under the initiative, the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has sanctioned ₹379.41 crore for 432 energy providers associated with the Jodhpur Discom (installing 429 MW of capacity) and ₹151.21 crore for 121 solar power producers associated with the Ajmer Discom (installing 169 MW of capacity). The main objective of Component-C is the solarisation of grid-connected agriculture pumps and enabling farmers to earn additional income by selling surplus power to Discoms.
To date, claims totalling ₹1,012 crore in CFA have been submitted to the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy by the Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Ajmer Discoms. As reported by the official, ₹670 crore has already been received from the central government for 720 solar power producers. Rajasthan Discoms are providing full support to solar power producers to ensure timely submission of CFA claims.
The Centre provides a subsidy of up to 30 per cent — based on the plant's cost and capacity — to solar power producers who set up plants to solarise entire agricultural feeders. The maximum assistance for this is capped at ₹1.05 crore per MW. A total of 1,312 projects with a combined capacity of 3,371 MW have been established in the state under Component-C.
Solar power plants worth 2,647 MW in Jodhpur Discom, 373 MW in Ajmer Discom, and 352 MW in Jaipur Discom have been installed so far. According to the official, decentralised solar power plants with up to 5 MW capacity are established on barren land within a 5 km radius of a substation. Rajasthan ranks third in the country in this category, demonstrating significant progress in renewable energy adoption.
