Hyderabad, Telangana – In a major step to improve the lives of tribal farmers, the Telangana government has launched a new project called the Indira Solar Giri Jal Vikasam scheme. This initiative is designed to help tribal communities who were given land under the Forest Rights Act (RoFR) of 2006.
The scheme plans to bring solar-powered irrigation to six lakh acres of tribal farmland over the next five years. Around 2.10 lakh tribal farmers will benefit from this major investment. The government has set aside ₹12,600 crore for this project.
Dr. A Sharath, Secretary of the Tribal Welfare Department, officially announced the scheme by issuing a Government Order on Thursday.
The official launch event will take place on May 18 in Macharam village, located in Amrabad Mandal of the Achampet constituency. Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu will lead the inauguration. Finance Chief Secretary Sandeep Kumar Sultania is overseeing all preparations.
In advance of the event, Minister Jupally Krishna Rao visited the site to review the arrangements. He stated that a dedicated team, led by District Collector Badawat Santosh, is working together to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Krishna Rao emphasized that this scheme will bring many benefits to tribal communities. It aims to boost the productivity of tribal lands, provide reliable water for irrigation, and raise the income levels of tribal farmers.
Although the UPA government introduced the RoFR Act in 2006 and granted land rights for about 6.69 lakh acres in Telangana, previous state governments failed to deliver meaningful support like irrigation or crop assistance to tribal farmers.
Now, under the new “people’s government” inspired by Indiramma Rajyam, Telangana is changing that by giving tribals the tools they need to farm successfully.
Along with solar irrigation, the scheme also supports drip irrigation for horticulture, provides fruit and crop saplings, and offers intercropping assistance. This helps farmers earn income while they wait for long-term crops to mature.
This is the first time any state in India has introduced an irrigation project specifically for lands distributed under the RoFR Act. Telangana is setting a new national benchmark in tribal welfare and sustainable agriculture.
