Energy measures in the budget

The demand for energy is on the rise due to economic expansion, population growth, and rapid technological advancements. However, the reliance on imported fossil fuels and energy supply limitations poses significant challenges to the country’s economic prospects. In response, the government aims to optimise the utilisation of local energy sources such as hydel, solar, wind, and Thar coal. The government recently approved the Framework Guidelines for Fast Track Solar Initiatives 2022 to promote and develop cost-effective renewable energy. This framework primarily focuses on substituting expensive imported fossil fuels with solar photovoltaic (PV) energy, implementing solar PV generation on 11kV feeders, and solarising public buildings. During the current fiscal year (2022-23), the addition of three Thar coal-based power plants has increased the total installed capacity to 3,300MW. Additionally, there are six nuclear power plants with a combined installed capacity of 3,560MW.