Dhanbad, Jharkhand - Solar Pumps Tool Dhanbad, Jharkhand | Solar Pumps Tool Humane ClubMade in Humane Club

Dhanbad, Jharkhand

For average crop revenue per holding, the district appears among the top 25 percentile of districts, implying higher investment capacity of the farmers here. The district has a relatively high penetration of banks in rural and semi-rural areas, facilitating higher access to institutional credit for farmers. There is a comparatively high level of farm mechanization in the district, implying a positive outlook towards progressive technologies amongst the farmers. The district has a relatively high proportion of small and marginal farmers.

Deployment Approaches

Approaches Feasibility
Individually owned off-grid solar pumps Not Suitable
Solarisation of feeders Limited Suitability
Solar based water as a service Limited SUitability
Promote 1 HP and sub-HP pumps Limited Suitability
Solarisation of individual grid-connected pumps Not suitable

Individually owned off-grid solar pumps

Not Suitable

The district has high crop revenue per holding overall. But, ground water availability is below the safe limit, the concentration of diesel pump users is comparatively low, and disbursement of institutional credit is also relatively low, making it extremely difficult to promote the private ownership of solar pumps here.

Parameter Value Percentile
Number of cultivators reporting use of diesel pumps 12,961 46
Water Availability Index 0.6 47
Crop revenue per holding (INR) 237181 88
Medium and long term institutional credit disbursed in a year (in INR Crore) 0 0

Solarisation of feeders

Limited Suitability

The district has a relatively high penetration of electric pumps and a comparatively high extent of feeder segregation but its DISCOM incurs a relatively low cost for supplying power. As the power purchase rate of the DISCOM increases going forward, solarisation of the feeders may become economically viable in the district.

Parameter Value Percentile
Actual cost of power supply (INR/kWh) 5.26 20
Extent of feeder segregation 61% 51
Proportion of cultivators reporting use of electric pumps 3% 34

Solar based water as a service

Limited SUitability

The district has a relatively high concentration of small and marginal farmers, and a rather high proportion of unirrigated area, but groundwater availability is below the safe limit. Water conservation and efficient irrigation practices (such as drip irrigation) should be considered while promoting solar-based water as a service, in order to improve the economic viability of the model, increase water availability, and decrease the effective cost of irrigation in the district.

Parameter Value Percentile
Water Availability Index 0.6 47
Proportion of small and marginal cultivators 90% 61
Unirrigated net sown area as a share of total net sown area 89% 81

Promote 1 HP and sub-HP pumps

Limited Suitability

The district has a relatively high proportion of gross cropped area under horticulture crops and a rather high concentration of marginal farmers. But, groundwater availability in the district is below the safe limit, and disbursement of institutional credit to marginal farmers is comparatively low, making it very difficult to promote 1 HP and sub-HP pumps here. Promotion of such pumps must accompany support for marginal farmers (subsidies and loans), along with promotion of micro-irrigation.

Parameter Value Percentile
Area under horticulture crops as a share of gross cropped area 13% 68
Water Availability Index 0.6 47
Proportion of marginal cultivators 77% 71
Medium and long term institutional credit disbursed in a year (in INR Crore) 0 0

Solarisation of individual grid-connected pumps

Not suitable

The district has a relatively high penetration of electric pumps, ground water available within the safe limits and a comparatively high extent of feeder segregation but agriculture power subsidy is not very significant. Further with the groundwater availability below the safe limits, solarisation of individual grid-connected pumps may not be the right approach for the district

Parameter Value Percentile
Water Availability Index 0.6 47
Actual cost of power supply (INR/kWh) 5.26 20
Extent of feeder segregation 61% 51

Leveraging Solar Pumps to Promote Policy Objectives

If you are deploying solar pumps in this district then you can further these policy objectives.

Har Khet ko Pani

A relatively high proportion of the net sown area in the district is unirrigated, indicating high irrigation demand. Solar pumps can help improve access to underground irrigation as part of Har Khet ko Pani.

Parameter Value Percentile
Unirrigated net sown area as a share of total net sown area 89% 81

Doubling Farmers’ Income – Crop Intensity

A relatively high proportion of the district’s net sown area is unirrigated. Lack of access to irrigation is one of the major barriers to growing crops beyond two conventional seasons, rabi and kharif. Ensuring irrigation access through solar power will help improve cropping intensity and move towards the aim of doubling farmers’ income by 2022.

Parameter Value Percentile
Unirrigated net sown area as a share of total net sown area 89% 81

National Mission on Oilseeds and Oil Palm (NMOOP)

The relatively low share of oilseeds and oil palm crops under gross sown area in the district makes it a suitable candidate for promoting NMOOP. Solar pumps could meet irrigation needs for these crops and help farmers diversify their yields beyond cereals.

Parameter Value Percentile
Area under oilseeds as a share of total cropped area 0

Dhanbad, Jharkhand
Summary
Number of operational holdings
49,126
Average size of operational holding (Ha)
0.84
No. of cultivators using diesel pumps
12,961
No. of cultivators using electric pumps
1,549
Parameters (value, percentile)
Unirrigated net sown area ('000 ha)
6
11
Area under horticulture crops as a share of gross cropped area
13%
68
Water Availability Index
0.6
47
Monthly per capita expenditure of rural agricultural households (INR)
1,202
49
Crop revenue per holding (INR)
237181
88
No. of rural and semi-urban bank branches per 10,000 farmers
22.8
92
Medium and long-term institutional credit disbursed in a year (in INR Crore)
0
0
No. of calls made at Kisan Call Centre (between 1.1.2011 - 31.12.2015)
435
25
Level of farm mechanisation (tractors, harvesters, threshers per ha)
2.95
97