India will collaborate with the International Solar Alliance (ISA) to replicate its success in deploying solar energy at both utility and distributed levels through household and farm-level initiatives such as the PM Surya Ghar – Muft Bijli Yojana (SGMBY) and PM-KUSUM, in developing countries, mainly in Africa and small island nations.
“Under the PM-KUSUM scheme, we are taking this transformation to the heartland of India,” Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Pralhad Joshi, who is also the ISA Assembly President, announced here at a curtain-raiser event last week for ISA’s eighth General Assembly, scheduled in New Delhi from October 27-30.
Delivering his presidential address, the minister explained that the three components of the Rs 34,000-crore PM-KUSUM scheme target the installation of 10 gigawatts of small solar plants; support 1.4 million off-grid solar pumps; and solarise 3.5 million grid-connected agricultural pumps. “Together, these efforts are ensuring that clean energy reaches the last mile. It is this combination of scale and inclusiveness that defines India’s energy transition,” he added.
Some of the deployment experiments in Africa have shown encouraging results, MNRE Secretary Santosh Sarangi informed the meeting. “Given India’s success in deploying solar energy at both utility and distributed levels—through household and farm-level initiatives such as the PM Surya Ghar – Muft Bijli Yojana, which aims to solarise 10 million households, and the PM-KUSUM scheme for farm-level solarisation—India is ready to partner with other countries in implementing similar initiatives.”
Speaking on the occasion, ISA director general Ashish Khanna said the total percentage of arable land that is irrigated in Africa is just four per cent, when that figure is about 60 per cent elsewhere. “Africa today imports food worth 400 billion dollars even though it has huge arable land — because of the absence of irrigation,” he said. “So, all heads of state are looking for a solar pump story like PM-KUSUM. We are trying to create a large, aggregated platform of countries to support Africa in this way.”
Speaking about the strides made by India, Mr Joshi said, “Owing to its clear vision and the consistent policies, India achieved its renewable energy targets five years ahead of schedule, crossing the 50 per cent mark in overall installed electricity capacity from non-fossil resources.”
The minister informed the assembly that India is the world’s third-largest solar producer today, with approximately 125 GW of solar capacity. “This progress shows how national ambition can translate to meaningful change at the local level. It is because our success story is more than just numbers; it is about the people. We have seen firsthand how decentralised solar transforms lives, brings light to rural homes, powers local health centres and gives new tools to our farmers,” he said.
Adding to the minister, Mr Sarangi said, “Today we are the third largest in solar power, fourth largest in wind power and overall, we are now the third largest renewable energy installation in the world.”
Additionally, in the manufacturing of solar modules, India is the second largest after China. “Our manufacturing is not only confined to solar modules but also extends to areas like green hydrogen, which is a pivotal part of our energy security—and is going ahead as per our goal of manufacturing about 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2031,” he said.
Launched by India and France at COP21 in Paris, ISA is the largest treaty-based intergovernmental organisation from the Global South, bringing together 124 Member and Signatory Countries. This high-level ministerial gathering comes weeks ahead of COP30 in Brazil, shaping priorities for scaling solar energy, unlocking transformative finance, charting technology and policy roadmaps, and building skill ecosystems to accelerate a just and inclusive energy transition.