Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday dedicated to the nation in virtual mode the 100 MW floating solar PV project at Ramagundam. This is as part of concluding the week-long celebrations of ‘Ujjwal Bharat Ujjwal Bhavishya Power @ 2047’ explaining the achievements made so far and the targets fixed for 2047 in the field of renewable energy.
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The Prime Minister also launched the power sector’s Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme. He also dedicated and laid the foundation stone of various green energy projects of NTPC worth over ₹5,200 crore and launched the National Solar Rooftop Portal.
Union Minister for Tourism and Culture G. Kishan Reddy participated in the programme at Kandukur in the Rangareddy district virtually. The Prime Minister interacted with beneficiaries of various schemes.
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Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said Energy and power sectors had a huge role to play in accelerating India’s progress in the next 25 years. “The strength of the energy sector is also important for Ease of Doing Business and is equally important for Ease of Living. The projects launched today are significant steps in the direction of green energy and energy security for the county. These projects will strengthen India’s renewable energy goals, commitment and aspirations of its green mobility,” he said.
The Prime Minister announced that work on two big green hydrogen projects in Ladakh and Gujarat was starting on Saturday. “The plant is being set up in Ladakh and will produce green hydrogen for vehicles in the country. This will be the first project in the country that will make commercial use of green hydrogen-based transport possible. Ladakh very soon will be the first place in the country where fuel cell electric vehicles will start to ply. This will help in making Ladakh a carbon-neutral region,” the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister said that after blending ethanol in petrol and aviation fuel, now the country was moving towards blending green hydrogen in piped natural gas pipelines, which will reduce import dependence on natural gas.
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“In the last 8 years, about 1,70,000 MW of electricity generation capacity has been added in the country. One Nation One Power Grid has become the strength of the country today. About 1,70,000 circuit kilometre transmission lines have been laid to connect the entire country. Furthermore, by giving 3 crore connections under the Saubhagya Scheme, we are also nearing the saturation goal,” he added.
“We had resolved to create 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by the completion of 75 years of Independence. Today we have come close to this goal. So far, about 170 GW capacity has been installed from non-fossil sources. Today, India is in the top 4-5 countries of the world in terms of installed solar capacity. Many of the world’s largest solar power plants are in India today. The country has got two more big solar plants today. These plants built in Telangana and Kerala are the first and second largest floating solar plants in the country. Solar panels are being encouraged in households,” said
The Prime Minister said that along with increasing the production of electricity, the emphasis of the government was also on saving electricity. “Saving electricity means enriching the future. PM Kusum Yojana is a great example of this. We are providing solar pump facility to farmers, helping to install solar panels on the side of the fields”, he said.
The Prime Minister said losses in our distribution sector were in double digits whereas in the developed countries of the world it was in single digit. Informing that different states have outstanding dues of more than ₹1 lakh crore to power generation companies, the Prime Minister requested the states whose dues were pending, to clear them as soon as possible.