Stree Nidhi revolutionising rooftops in rural Telangana

Around 20% of the total cost of installation will be offered as subsidy under the scheme, and the rest is to be borne by the beneficiary.

Grid connected rooftop solar panels, which are usually considered an urban thing, have started appearing on the terraces of rural Telangana, thanks to Stree Nidhi, a cooperative credit facility jointly promoted by self-help groups and the State government.

As part of its ‘Climate Financing’ initiatives, the credit cooperative federation has funded installation of grid-connected photovoltaic systems on the rooftops of 205 households in 49 villages of 10 districts in the State. The districts are Kamareddy, Jagtial, Sangareddy, Medak, Nirmal, Nizamabad, Jangaon, Karimnagar, Suryapet and Adilabad.

It has resulted in savings of a minimum of 150 units of power consumption per household per month, translating into at least 3.7 lakh units per year. Buoyed by the results, the Stree Nidhi authorities have set themselves an ambitious target of 10,000 such installations by the end of the year.

As per the circular issued by the Rural Development wing of the State government in December last year, the scheme rides piggyback on the subsidy offered by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy for grid connected rooftop solar systems, mediated by the Telangana State Renewable Energy Development Corporation (TSREDCO) together with the power distribution companies.

Around 20% of the total cost of installation will be offered as subsidy under the scheme, and the rest is to be borne by the beneficiary. This is where Stree Nidhi comes to the aid, and offers substantial portion of the beneficiary contribution as loan. For a 2kWp (Kilowatt peak) unit, the cost of which is ₹1.44 lakh, the subsidy component is ₹29,176 and the loan offered is 1.15 lakh. Beneficiary has to shell out mere ₹5,134 upfront. For a 3 kWp unit, the beneficiary contribution is as low as ₹9,126.

The loan is repayable in 60 months, at the interest rate of 11% per annum. The scheme is available only for self-help group members having their own RCC building or the double bedroom house allotted by the State government with 160 to 200 square feet of rooftop space.

“Our power bill has plummeted to bare minimum, and we are contributing a large number of units to the grid every month, paid back at the rate of ₹4.5 per unit by the discom. While the loan will be paid off in five years, the benefits accrue over the next 25 years. With power charges set to increase year on year, I am happy that I have opted for this,” said Durga Bhavani, a tailor and Village Organisation Assistant of the self-help group from Thimmapur village in Kamareddy district, where 15 installations have been done.