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Solar Power in India
Incredible India! Nothing seems truer than that line. We are the oldest civilization, largest democracy and the second fastest growing economy. We are a mélange of what was and what will be. To us, the future seems bright and wondrous. We are invincible. But are we? That's the question that should go through every one of us. We are growing and growth needs energy and the problem is we have no food of our own. We spend more and more every year on importing fuel. We need a sustainable source of energy as our hunger is just increasing. What we need is renewable energy. It's not that we don't have it; it's just that more can be done to maximize its use. We are already leaders in wind farming and have sufficient experience in hydroelectricity. The energy we keep ignoring is the solar energy.
We are blessed to receive more than three hundred days of sunlight. We receive so much radiant energy from the sun that utilizing even 10% of it will eliminate our energy crisis for the coming years. Right now India only produces 10MW of solar electricity, which accounts for less than 1% of India's total electricity. India now needs about 600TWh and it is estimated that by 2020 the need is going to double. This is the time to focus on solar energy because soon just using thermal energy will not be enough. We can't always rely on coal which right now is the source of almost 70% of India's electricity. The thing that is slowing the progress of solar energy is the cost of installments and the need of vast stretches of land. Now focusing on each topic a bit: 1) Cost of installments - one of the major hindrances of the solar energy in India is the cost of the equipments. It does not help to think that most of it has to be imported. They combine to put a heavy cost burden on the implementation of solar plants 2) Land - 1km^2 of land produces about 20MW of electricity. Thus we need huge tracts of land to make reasonable amount of electricity. These in a country like India is a tough ask. We have one of the lowest per capita lands. So it becomes a question of survival for us. Solar power not only necessary but in some cases the only solution to some huge problems in our country. For example, in India 10000 villages still have no electricity. Solar energy is the only way to provide these places with electricity, because it will still take a lot of time to get these far off places to get connected to the grid. Looking to the future the scene of solar energy in India though is looking very bright. With recent interest of government in solar energy, we have received a greatly needed impetus. The government has declared last year of its ambitious plans to setup 20000MW of solar energy by 2020 and had also allocated $220 million for the same. The government of Gujarat is building the largest solar plant in the world with a capacity of 3000MW. Also, India has allocated 35000 square kilometer in the Thar Desert for the construction solar plants. I think now is the time to start taking alternative renewable energy seriously before it's too late. We have a limited supply of coal, and sooner or later it is going to run out. We cannot wait for that time to come; we have to start acting now. For starters I believe the Indian government has to completely remove duties from solar equipment so that it's easier and cheaper to implement. Allocation of barren land and greater tax subsidy for companies in this field will further make solar energy viable. I believe that solar energy will be the knight in shining armor for India's energy crisis. It is our ticket to solving the energy crisis forever.
Editor's note: Most articles submitted to Chillibreeze go through a selection process. Only 30 percent of submitted articles are accepted for publication on the Chillibreeze.com featured article list. All accepted articles are edited and proofread for glaring errors of punctuation and grammar. Sentence structure is changed in certain cases and sometimes, entire sections are rewritten. If you notice any errors that have slipped through the cracks, do let us know! (Email us at info at chillibreeze dot com). Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in April, 2011. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.
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