Shillong, Nov 3: Power Minister Metbah Lyngdoh has urged the Centre to revisit the benchmark costs for solar schemes, citing higher installation costs in Meghalaya’s hilly terrain.

Lyngdoh said he raised the issue during a recent meeting chaired by the Union Power Minister in Guwahati, Assam. He highlighted the disparity between the central government’s benchmark cost of Rs 55,000 per kW and the actual cost of Rs 80,000–85,000 per kW in Meghalaya, which has led to low uptake of the PM-KUSUM scheme despite the state increasing the subsidy to 45 per cent.

He stressed that the current benchmark costs are not suitable for the state’s geography and have discouraged beneficiaries from availing the scheme. Meghalaya is installing over 2,000 additional solar pumps and seeks revised benchmark cos

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