PM-KUSUM 2.0 to let farmers generate renewable energy alongside crops: Pralhad Joshi

The second edition of the PM-KUSUM scheme will be launched soon to enable farmers to generate renewable energy while continuing agricultural activities on the same land, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Thursday.

PM-KUSUM 2.0 is expected to be announced shortly and will introduce a new model for decentralised renewable energy generation in rural India, the New and Renewable Energy Minister said.

Joshi was speaking on the sidelines of a curtain-raiser event for the 7th Agrivoltaics World Conference 2026, scheduled to be held in New Delhi from October 21 to 23.

An official said PM-KUSUM 2.0 is expected to include a dedicated 10 GW agri-PV component aimed at promoting the co-location of solar panels with crops.

The outlay for the second version of the scheme is also expected to be higher than that of the first edition, the official said.

At the event, the Indo-German Cooperation on Agrivoltaics (IGCA) invited proposals from stakeholders, including farmers, farmer organisations, renewable energy developers and public institutions.

The proposals will be considered for technical support, viability gap funding and research instrumentation support across different categories of existing and planned agrivoltaic projects.

Launched in 2019 with an outlay of Rs 34,422 crore, the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) seeks to promote renewable energy in agriculture and help farmers reduce irrigation costs.

The scheme had set a target of adding 34,800 MW of solar capacity by March 2026.