Jharkhand is leveraging solar energy to provide year-round irrigation facilities

Ranchi: Promotion of farming activities and increasing the farmer's income has been one of the utmost priorities of the state government led by chief minister Hemant Soren.

Schemes like Mukhyamantri Pashudhan Vikas Yojna, Birsa Harit Gram Yojna, Mukhyamantri Krishi Rinn Mafi Yojna and many more have been launched in this regard. In order to promote multi-crop farming, the administration is also working on several solar lift irrigation projects in different districts across the state.

In a bid to ensure irrigation facilities for the farmers throughout the year, the Latehar district administration has brought 1,000 acres of land under the solar lift irrigation facility, which has benefitted approximately 400 farming households in the district.

Latehar has been one of the most backward and economically weak districts of Jharkhand, the livelihood of a substantial part of the population is dependent on agriculture. A major part of farmland is used only during the rains for paddy crops. To find a sustainable irrigation solution, the administration has installed many solar lift irrigation pumps in the district to ensure the year-round availability of water for irrigation. Each pump unit has a capacity of 5HP with a 5KW solar panel installed at a Pump House which covers 300 meters of an irrigation channel with the coverage of 10-12 acres of land. A total of 100 such units have been installed in the district which will cover an area of 1000 acres.. Apart from this, to ensure the safety of the pump house, each pump unit has been insured against natural hazards and thievery.

Deputy Commissioner, Latehar Abu Imran said that as per the vision of Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the district administration is working on supporting the farmers and increasing their income. Latehar is a poor and one of the most backward districts of Jharkhand. A substantial part of the population is dependent on agriculture and due to the unavailability of modern irrigation facilities, farmers are able to yield only one crop a year. The district administration is working on promoting multi-crop farming in the district. Towards the same, the local administration has installed almost 100 solar pump units in the district for a lift irrigation facility covering over 1000 acres of land. After a feasibility study, the district administration will install more such units in the coming time.

The state government is working on increasing farmer’s income and had launched multiple schemes to aid this cause. The farmers are the strength and without promoting the farmers and the villages the state cannot grow. The state government is committed to the development of an efficient farming ecosystem and increased income for farming households in the state.