PM-KUSUM (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan)

PM-KUSUM is a central government scheme that helps farmers use solar power for irrigation and earn money by producing solar electricity. It is run by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). The name roughly means "Prime Minister's campaign for farmers' energy security and upliftment". It has three parts: small solar power plants on farmland, standalone solar pumps, and solar power for pumps that are already connected to the grid.

Why was it needed?

Indian farmers depend heavily on pumps to lift groundwater and canal water. Many pumps run on diesel, which is costly and pollutes the air. Others run on grid electricity that states supply free or very cheap to farmers. This makes electricity distribution companies (DISCOMs) lose money, and the supply to farms is often only at night or unreliable.

Solar power can solve all three problems: it is clean, it has almost no running cost, and it is available in the daytime when farmers need it. The scheme also lets farmers sell solar power, turning them from only "annadata" (food-giver) into "urjadata" (energy-giver) as well.

Where did it come from?

The Union Cabinet approved the scheme in February 2019, and it was launched in 2019. The aim at that time was to add about 25,750 MW of solar capacity by 2022. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and slow progress, it was extended. In 2022 and 2023, MNRE extended it to 31 March 2026 and revised the targets.

Feeder-level solarisation guidelines were added under Component C in December 2020. As of the latest targets, the scheme aims at about 34,800 MW of solar capacity, with total central support of ₹34,422 crore.

What are its three components?

• Component A: small solar power plants (10,000 MW target). Farmers, groups of farmers, cooperatives, panchayats, FPOs and water user associations can set up grid-connected solar (or other renewable) plants of 500 kW to 2 MW. The plant must be within 5 km of an electricity substation. It can be built on barren or fallow land, or on cultivable land if the panels are raised on stilts so crops can grow below. The local DISCOM buys the power at a tariff fixed by the State Electricity Regulatory Commission. MNRE gives the DISCOM a Procurement Based Incentive of 40 paise per unit (kWh) or ₹6.60 lakh per MW per year, whichever is less, for five years.
• Component B: standalone solar pumps (14 lakh target). Farmers who have no grid connection get off-grid solar pumps of up to 7.5 HP, replacing diesel pumps. The Centre pays 30% of the cost (called Central Financial Assistance, CFA), the state pays at least 30%, and the farmer pays the remaining 40%, of which a part can come from a bank loan. In the North-Eastern states, Sikkim, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the CFA is 50%, so the farmer pays only 20%.
• Component C: solarising grid-connected pumps (35 lakh target). This has two forms. In Individual Pump Solarisation (IPS), a solar panel is added to a farmer's existing grid pump, and the farmer can sell extra power to the DISCOM. In Feeder Level Solarisation (FLS), a solar plant is built to supply a whole agricultural feeder, that is, the power line that serves a group of farms. The farmer gets daytime power without having to install panels.

You can think of Component A as "farmers as power producers", Component B as "solar instead of diesel", and Component C as "solar for pumps already on the grid".

How has it performed?

Progress has been uneven. According to data given in Parliament, as of 31 October 2025, about 9,466 MW, or about 27% of the target, had been achieved. Component A had only about 653 MW installed. Component B had about 9.17 lakh standalone pumps. Component C had about 9.85 lakh pumps solarised, almost all of them through feeder-level solarisation.

The scheme period ended on 31 March 2026. MNRE allowed eligible projects (those whose power purchase agreements or orders were issued by 31 December 2025) to be completed until 31 March 2027. A new version, PM-KUSUM 2.0, is being prepared with a planned 10 GW agri-PV component, and it is expected to go to the Union Cabinet for approval.

India's position and Indian examples

Rajasthan, Haryana, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh are among the states that have used the scheme widely for pumps. Gujarat ran its own scheme called SKY (Suryashakti Kisan Yojana) in 2018, which let farmers sell surplus solar power from their pumps. An earlier pilot in Dhundi village in Anand district, Gujarat, set up India's first solar pump irrigators' cooperative in 2016. These show how selling surplus power can give farmers a reason not to waste water.

Commonly confused concepts

• PM-KUSUM vs PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana: PM-KUSUM is for farmers and irrigation. PM Surya Ghar (2024) is for rooftop solar on homes, giving up to 300 units of free electricity per month.
• Component A vs agrivoltaics: Component A plants can be on barren land, where no farming happens. Only when they are raised on stilts over crops do they become agrivoltaics.
• IPS vs FLS: IPS puts solar panels at an individual farmer's pump. FLS builds one solar plant for a whole feeder, serving many farms together.
• PM-KUSUM vs PM-KISAN: Both started in 2019 and both are for farmers, but they are very different. PM-KISAN (Ministry of Agriculture) gives eligible farmer families direct cash support of ₹6,000 a year. PM-KUSUM (MNRE) gives subsidy for solar pumps and solar plants, and the money comes through state agencies and DISCOMs.
• India's first solar irrigation cooperative vs PM-KUSUM: The Dhundi cooperative (registered in 2016) came before PM-KUSUM and was a local pilot supported by a research body. PM-KUSUM is a national scheme.

Issues, criticism and the way forward

• Slow progress in Component A: Small farmers find it hard to raise money for a 0.5 to 2 MW plant. Banks see these projects as risky. Several states reported almost no Component A installations.
• DISCOM reluctance: Some DISCOMs were slow to sign agreements to buy power, as they already had power contracts or poor finances.
• Groundwater risk: Once a solar pump is installed, pumping water costs almost nothing. This may push farmers to over-pump groundwater in areas where it is already falling. Allowing farmers to sell surplus power can make saving water more profitable.
• Farming stopped on solar land: Many plants on farmland ended up used only for power, which defeats the aim of helping farmers keep farming.
• Farmer share of cost: Even 40% of a pump's cost can be too much for small and marginal farmers.
• Way forward: Experts and officials suggest a larger focus on feeder-level solarisation, an agrivoltaics component, battery storage, easier bank loans, assured power buying by DISCOMs, and aligning the scheme with other farm schemes.

Concepts to Know

• DISCOM (distribution company): The company, usually owned by the state government, that supplies electricity to homes and farms and collects bills.
• Feeder: A power line from a substation that carries electricity to a group of users, such as a set of farms.
• Central Financial Assistance (CFA): The share of a project's cost paid by the central government.
• Tariff: Here, the price per unit of electricity at which a DISCOM buys power from a producer.
• kWh (unit): One kilowatt-hour, the common "unit" of electricity on a power bill.
• HP (horsepower): A unit of the power of a pump or motor. Most farm pumps are between 3 and 10 HP.