From ploughs to panels, cultivating a solar-powered future for farmers, Pg20

Key Highlights:

• Agrivoltaics (APVs) is the practice of co-locating solar photovoltaic (PV) panels with agriculture, enabling dual land use.

  • India's focus on PM-KUSUM could incorporate APVs to support smallholder farmers with both energy and income security.

  • Germany mandates 66% crop coverage under solar installations; similar land use efficiency models are absent in India.

Detailed Insights:

What is Agrivoltaics (APV)?

• APV combines solar energy generation with agricultural production by installing elevated solar panels that allow crops to be grown underneath.

  • First proposed in 1981 by German scientists Adolf Goetzberger and Armin Zastrow.

  • Aims to maximize land use efficiency and provide clean energy access to farmers.

Benefits of APVs:

Agricultural Gains

Energy Gains

Reduces evapotranspiration

Dual-use of land improves viability

Improves crop microclimate

Allows energy sales to grid

Enables crop protection under partial shade

Reduces dependence on thermal power

• Especially suited for smallholder farmers (<2 hectares), promoting livelihood diversification.

Challenges in India:

• Lack of policy clarity: No mandated standards for APV use.

  • Capital cost: High upfront costs, especially without feed-in tariffs (FiTs) or incentives.

  • Land use ambiguity: Land categorisation between “agriculture” and “commercial” needs reform for APV scaling.

  • Infrastructure constraints: Many solar PVs in India are ground-mounted, not APV-structured.

Case Example:

• A pilot APV system in Najafgarh, Delhi showed how elevated PVs could enable both farming and energy generation, but required custom design and interspace planning.

  • Japan, Germany, and South Korea already promote APVs via subsidies, FiTs, and innovation-linked incentives.

Scientific Concepts Involved:

• Solar Photovoltaic Systems: Technology that converts sunlight into electricity using semiconductors.

  • Interspace Cultivation: Farming in the space between solar panel rows.

  • Feed-in Tariff (FiT): Policy mechanism where energy producers are guaranteed a fixed payment for surplus electricity fed into the grid.

Policy Recommendations:

• Integrate APVs into PM-KUSUM, especially Component B (for standalone solar pumps).

  • Offer subsidised loans, grant support, and attractive FiTs for energy produced from APVs.

  • Include customisable infrastructure for dual-use land models and make APV viability part of State action plans.

Significance:

• APVs represent a climate-smart agriculture solution that improves energy access, crop resilience, and farmer income.

  • Critical for India’s energy transition goals and carbon neutrality targets, especially in semi-arid and water-stressed regions.

Mains Mock Question:

Discuss the potential of agrivoltaics (APV) as a sustainable solution for India's smallholder farmers. What policy measures are needed to make APVs viable under the PM-KUSUM scheme?