CONSTRAINTS TO SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC IRRIGATION PUMP ADOPTION IN THE CAUVERY DELTA REGION OF TAMIL NADU: A RESPONSE PRIORITY INDEX APPROACH

Abstract

Understanding why farmers do not adopt solar photovoltaic (SPV) irrigation pump sets despite despite substantial government financial supportis critical for designing effective intervention programs under India's PM-KUSUM scheme. This study investigates the constraints to solar pump adoption among 180 non-adopting farm households, drawn from a total sample of 360 farm households across 18 villages in the Cauvery Delta Region (CDR) of Tamil Nadu encompassing Mayiladuthurai, Tiruvarur, and Thanjavur districts during 2023–24. The Response Priority Index (RPI), a rank-based quotient (RBQ) technique (Sabarathnam, 1988), was applied to prioritize 17 adoption constraints identified through focus group discussions and a review of prior literature. High initial capital cost ranked first in perceived importance (38.9% of respondents placed it at Rank 1), followed in descending priority by inadequate PM KUSUM awareness, the free electricity distortion wherein Tamil Nadu's zero-tariff agricultural power policy makes solar investment unattractive relative to free electric irrigation, inadequate after-sales service, and lack of institutional credit access. The RPI-based priority order was broadly consistent with Garrett's Ranking results reported in comparable CDR studies (Jayakumar and Ramasamy, 2019). The study concludes that solar pump adoption constraints in the CDR are simultaneously economic, informational, and structural in nature indicating the need for coordinated economic, informational and institutional policy interventions. Recommended interventions include net metering for solar pump systems to neutralize the free electricity distortion, NABARD zero-interest solar pump loans, intensive district-level PM-KUSUM awareness campaigns, expansion of authorized service center networks, and tenant farmer eligibility reforms under PM-KUSUM.