Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms

The Ministry of Textiles has proposed a solar energy scheme for the development and upgradation of powerloom sectors in the country. Under this scheme, the Government will provide assistance for the installation of a solar power plant to address power shortage issues faced by the decentralised powerloom units. In this article, we look at the Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms in detail.

Features of the Scheme

The features of the solar energy scheme for powerloom units are as follows:

The solar energy scheme seeks to provide financial assistance in the form of capital subsidy to small powerloom units for installation of Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV) plants.
These Solar Photo Voltaic plants will alleviate the problem of power cuts and shortage faced by decentralised powerloom units across the country.
Under the solar energy scheme, the solar plants will have two options:

- - On-Grid Solar Power Plant without battery back up can be installed in the areas where power cut and shortage are negligible, and power tariff is high.
  - Off-Grid Solar Power Plant with the battery back up can be installed in the areas where there is power shortage.

Eligibility Criteria

The following are the eligibility criteria required to apply for the solar energy scheme:

The powerloom units having 8 looms are eligible to obtain assistance under the scheme.
The powerloom permit which is issued by the concerned regional office of the Textile Commissioner is eligible.
The powerloom units should have a shade-free rooftop or area to implement the installation of the solar plant.

Eligibility Criteria for Manufactures

Any new manufactures of Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV) plant along with their authorised distributors as approved by the Department of New and Renewable Energy are eligible for supplying the SPV plant under the scheme.

Note: However, the manufacturer can apply for the scheme through the common application form (Format A). On verification of the form, the concerned regional office of the Textile Commissioner would submit their report to the office of the Textile Commissioner for necessary registration.

Quantum of Subsidy

The assistance given by the government for the installation of solar power plants are tabulated below: On-Grid Power Plant

S. No	No of Looms (Solar Capacity)	Maximum cost of equipment and component eligible for the subsidy	Maximum Subsidy
S. No	No of Looms (Solar Capacity)		General Catergory (50%)	SC Catergory (75%)	ST Catergory (90%)
1.	4 Looms (4KW)	Rs.2,80,000	Rs.1,40,000	Rs.2,10,000	Rs.2,52,000
2.	6 Looms (6KW)	Rs.4,20,000	Rs.2,10,000	Rs.3,15,000	Rs.3,78,000
3.	8 Looms (8KW)	Rs.5,60,000	Rs.2,80,000	Rs.4,20,000	Rs.5,04,000

Off-Grid Power Plant

S. No	No of Looms (Solar Capacity)	Maximum cost of equipment and component eligible for the subsidy	Maximum Subsidy
S. No	No of Looms (Solar Capacity)		General Category (50%)	SC Category (75%)	ST Category (90%)
1.	4 Looms (4KW)	Rs.3,60,000	Rs.1,80,000	Rs.2,70,500	Rs.3,24,000
2.	6 Looms (6KW)	Rs.5,40,000	Rs.2,70,000	Rs.4,05,000	Rs.4,86,000
3.	8 Looms (8KW)	Rs.7,20,000	Rs.3,60,000	Rs.5,40,000	Rs.6,48,000

Release of Funds

The subsidy will be provided to both credit-linked and non-credit linked solar projects. The subsidy will be released only for the installation of a solar project for running power loom units and not for individual components.

Documents Required

The below following are the documents required along with the application form:

Copy of electricity bill of the powerloom unit.
Copy of power-sharing agreement or notarized lease deed, if units are leased.
Copy of Aadhar card of the applicant is required.
Copy of Caste certificate of the applicant has to be enclosed.
Copy of invoice.
Copy of payment receipts.
Copy of PAN card of the applicant has to be obtained.
Copy of bank passbook (1st page only) to be submitted.
Powerloom permit or Acknowledgement of IM or SSI registration or Udyog Aadhar Memorandum is required.

Online Registration for Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms

To register for solar energy scheme for powerlooms, follow the steps specified here: Vist i-Powertex Step 1: The eligible applicant needs to access the official portal of i-Powertex, Government of India. New User Registration Step 2: In the case of new user registration, click on the “Register” button, which is on the home page of the portal. [caption id="attachment_87586" align="aligncenter" width="834"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 1 Step 3: Now, select the respective scheme from the list of powerloom schemes. [caption id="attachment_87588" align="aligncenter" width="830"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 2 Fill the Details Step 4: On the next page, the registration form will open up and fill the form with the required details of the enterprise. [caption id="attachment_87589" align="aligncenter" width="734"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 3 Receive OTP Step 5: After filling the details, the applicant will receive the OTP to the registered e-mail id. [caption id="attachment_87590" align="aligncenter" width="582"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 4 Step 6: Provide the following OTP, which is displayed on the screen and then click on the “Process” button. [caption id="attachment_87591" align="aligncenter" width="698"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 5 Registration Successful Step 7: After entering the OTP, then the system will show a successful message. Step 8: Now, enter a user name/email id, password of your choice and re-enter the password to confirm. [caption id="attachment_87592" align="aligncenter" width="676"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 6 Login into the Portal Step 9: Click on “Login” button to login into the portal and apply for the solar energy scheme. Step 10: After successful login, the dashboard will be displayed and select “Apply for Annexure-1A” to apply for a solar energy scheme. [caption id="attachment_87593" align="aligncenter" width="750"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 7 Format-IA Step 11: Select the “New” button, then the Format-IA will be displayed. Step 12: Enter the IM number, in case if you don’t have the IM number select the option “No”. [caption id="attachment_87594" align="aligncenter" width="781"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 8 Step 13: Click on “Existing Unit” to fetch the already registered information automatically and fill the following information which is compulsory on selecting “New” unit. Save the Draft Step 14: Click on the “Save” button to save the form as a draft so that the user can still edit the form by saving as a draft. Step 15: Click on the “Submit” button to submit the form to the regional office of the location that the user has selected while filling the form. [caption id="attachment_87595" align="aligncenter" width="798"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 9 Step 16: The IM number will be issued on approval of the Format IA. Apply for Format-I Step 17: After completing the “Annexure-IA” and then apply for “Format-I” by clicking “In-Principal (Format -I) tab. [caption id="attachment_87596" align="aligncenter" width="759"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 10 Step 18: Now, the registered information will be fetched automatically from Format-IA. Upload the Documents Step 19: Upload the caste certificate, if the social category of the applicant is selected as General, SC and ST. Step 20: Click on the “Submit” button to submit your application to the respective regional office. [caption id="attachment_87598" align="aligncenter" width="772"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 11 Apply for Format-II Step 21: Fill the relevant details and submit the form (Format-II) by clicking on the “Submit to RO” button. [caption id="attachment_87599" align="aligncenter" width="753"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 12 Note: After verification of the application, the subsidy release status will be updated on the same portal.

Track Application Status

The status of the application submitted can be tracked as given below: Step 1: Click on “Know your Status” link and select the respective scheme name from the list. Step 2: Provide application reference number and click on the “Submit” button to view the application status. [caption id="attachment_87600" align="aligncenter" width="841"]

Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms - Image 13