7 Aug : The Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Dr. Farooq Abdullah,said that the solar energy systems installed in the country including rural areas are functioning satisfactorily. Field monitoring and evaluation studies undertaken by independent agencies i.e. the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), New Delhi, National Productivity Council (NPC), New Delhi and the Integrated Research & Action for Development (IRADe), New Delhi for the solar energy systems installed in the country including rural areas have indicated satisfactory performance for 70-100 percent systems. The systems include solar home lighting systems, solar streetlights, solar lanterns, solar pumps, solar cookers and solar power plants.
For further improving the functionality of the systems, the Government has taken several steps. For better implementation and maintenance of the systems, recently the Ministry has decided to implement the programmes in project mode. Authorized Centers are designated for prescribing specifications of systems and their type testing. Provision of warranty for a minimum period of two years for the complete solar photovoltaic (SPV) systems, including the batteries and minimum ten years for PV modules, provision of comprehensive, annual maintenance contracts for the systems for 5 years, including warranty period and additional facilities of after sales service & maintenance through the Akshya Urja Shops, service networks of the manufacturers and local level offices of the state renewable energy development agencies are the other steps taken..
This information was given by Shri Farooq Abdullah, Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, in Lok Sabha today.