‘Mandate solar plants to source components from Raj MSMEs’

Jaipur: Rajasthan has become the leading destination in the country for solar energy generation, but the rush of projects is not benefiting the state’s MSMEs, which are manufacturing equipment required to install the plants.Rajasthan Solar Association (RSA) urged the state government to announce a policy in the budget for making it mandatory for solar projects to source equipment except for panels.
RSA president Sunil Bansal said, “Solar components can be a Rs 30,000 crore business for the state’s manufacturers. Today, most of the components are sourced from outside. We want the government bring a policy to make it mandatory for solar projects to source certain percent of components from local companies.”
Bansal said if a policy comes, it will create big demand for local manufacturers which in turn generate large number of jobs and accelerate industrialisation in the state. The industry body also said the government should attach importance to distributed solar so that power is consumed in the area where it is generated without burdening the grid.TNN