National solar mission to be launched on Friday

New Delhi: The government today said the ambitious National Solar Mission, which aims to generate 20,000 MW of power by 2020, will be launched on Friday.

“Tomorrow, it will be cleared by the cabinet and it will have a nice launch on Friday,” new and renewable energy minister Farooq Abdullah told reporters here on the sidelines of an event in which MoUs were signed for setting up of biogas-power plants in cowsheds.

Asked about the reasons behind the one-week delay in launching the mission, the minister said: “it was not delayed. The finance minister was not in India and the final draft had to approved by the Finance Ministry and he had to have a look at it. I think it will be cleared by cabinet tomorrow.”

Under the solar mission, the minister said, the plan was to generate 20,000 MW of electricity by 2020 and hoped that it would give a boost to the country’s efforts of developing alternative energy sources.

On the plans to set up biogas-based power plants, he said first of such units would be inaugurated by September next year. The project will have multiple benefits for the country.

Environment and forests minister Jairam Ramesh was also present on the occasion.

The project is supported by the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) under a New and Renewable Energy Ministry project.