Page 19 - Mann Ki Baat, October 2022
P. 19

SOLAR ENERGY REVOLUTION   trillion kWh per year energy is
        incident over India's land area
 India Paving the Way for a Cleaner Future  with  most  parts receiving  4-7
        kWh per sq. m per day. Effectively
        harnessing this energy has the
        ability to generate power on a
        distributed basis, thus providing
        huge scalability. From an energy
 Solar Energy is a subject   With  the  increase  in  security perspective, solar is the
 today, in which the whole world   population across the globe,   most secure of all sources since
 is looking at its future and for   there has  been  a  massive
 India, the Sun God has not only   demand for energy to fuel the   it is abundantly available. Timely
 been worshiped for centuries,   rapid growth and development   action to tap this energy source
 but has also been the focus   in India has resulted in the solar
 of world economies. But, as the
 of our way of life. Today, India   power sector emerging as the
 need  for  energy increased,  the
 is combining its traditional   fastest  growing  renewable
 experiences  with  modern  heavy reliance on exhaustible   energy sources in the country
 science, that is why, today,   natural resources no longer   over the last few years.
 we have become one of the   remained  sustainable.  The
 largest countries to generate   extensive use of non-renewable   The Government of India
 electricity from solar energy.  resources caused rapid increase   has been driving a vibrant solar
        energy programme across the        as  one  which is ‘Sure,  Pure  &
 -Prime Minister Narendra Modi   in pollution worldwide further
        nation. And now, India is home     Secure’.  Under  his  leadership,
 (in his ‘Mann ki Baat’ address)  leading to a situation of climate
        to the country's first 24×7 solar-  the Government of India has
 crisis. It is the need of the hour
        powered village - Modhera in       introduced several initiatives to
 to switch to greener and cleaner
        Gujarat where Ground Mounted       promote the production of solar
 energy resources to meet the
        Solar power  plant  and  more      power in the nation to scale up
 energy needs of our constantly
        than 1,300 Rooftop solar systems   energy generation, including the
 advancing world. And, it has
        on residential & Government        National Solar Mission (NSM),
 become imperative that most
        buildings have been installed.     Solar Park program, the Off-
 of the new energy demand is
            Prime Minister Shri Narendra   grid and Decentralised Solar
 met by low-carbon, renewable
        Modi has described Solar Energy    Thermal Application  Scheme
 sources.
 "India has taken steps to set
 From Vedas to Yoga, Indian
 up solar PV plants of 100GW
 culture has always worshiped
 by 2022 and 280 GW by 2030,
 the Sun as the life-giver of this
 to achieve net-zero carbon
 planet and as a source of our
 emissions by 2070. India stood
 internal energy. The industrial
 th
 at 5  position in global solar
 revolution familiarised people
 power deployment in 2021,
 with the usage of sunlight as an
 jumping 16 places from 2010
 energy source, paving the way
 to 2021."
 for a solution for our external
 -Rabindra Kumar Satpathy
 energy requirements  through
 Member, Board of Directors,
 the power of modern science. As
 International Solar Energy
 India is located in the equatorial
 Society
 sun belt of the earth, about 5,000
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