Economics of solar energy use in agriculture

Book excerpt: Power is considered to be a core industry as it facilitates development across various sectors of the Indian economy, such as manufacturing, agriculture, commercial enterprises and railways. Keeping this into account, Govt. of India right from the inception of the first five year plan period has given special emphasis for its development. Whereas, Solar power has gained immense importance over the last 5 years as the world moves towards clean energy sources to reduce the negative impact on the environment and to reduce dependence on the limited reserves of coal and gas.Agriculture is the sole provider of human food. Most farm machines are driven by fossil fuels, which contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and, in turn, accelerate climate change. Such environmental damage can be mitigated by the promotion of renewable resources such as solar, wind, biomass, tidal, geo-thermal, small-scale hydro, bio-fuels and wave-generated power. These renewable resources have a huge potential for the agriculture industry. The farmers should be encouraged by subsidies to use renewable energy technology. The concept of sustainable agriculture lies on a delicate balance of maximizing crop productivity and maintaining economic stability, while minimizing the utilization of finite natural resources and detrimental environmental impacts. Hence, there is a need for promoting use of renewable energy systems for sustainable agriculture, e.g. solar photovoltaic water pumps and electricity, greenhouse technologies, solar dryers for post-harvest processing, and solar hot water heaters.