At an ISA SIDS leadership session in Belém, Bhupender Yadav showcases India’s rooftop, farm and rural solar models as templates for vulnerable islands seeking cleaner, resilient power systems


India has called for united global action to bolster energy security for Small Island Developing States (SIDS), presenting solar power as a pillar of resilience and social transformation for vulnerable economies.

Speaking at the High-Level Ministerial Leadership Session of the ISA SIDS Platform on the sidelines of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, on 19 November, Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav said India was committed to sharing its clean energy experience with island nations grappling with high fuel imports, climate shocks and fragile infrastructure.

Held under the theme “Uniting Islands, Inspiring Action Leadership for Energy Security”, the session convened ministers and senior representatives from SIDS, International Solar Alliance (ISA) member countries and partner institutions. The ISA SIDS Platform seeks to create a digital and financial ecosystem to accelerate solar deployment through standardised procurement, blended finance, local capacity building and smoother access to technology.

India’s Solar Growth
Yadav highlighted India’s rapid expansion of renewables, noting that the country has crossed 500 gigawatts of installed electricity capacity, with more than half from clean sources. India has already achieved 50 per cent non-fossil fuel-based capacity, five years ahead of its NDC deadline, he said, adding that the country now ranks fourth globally in renewable energy and third in solar power.

Citing the PM Surya Ghar Rooftop Solar Programme, the minister described rooftop systems as “a mini power plant on every roof”, stressing that over 20 lakh families have adopted the model, gaining what he termed “freedom for every household”. He recounted the story of a schoolteacher whose worry over electricity bills has given way to an eagerness for sunshine that now generates income.

Solar For Resilience
On agriculture, Yadav called solar “a new dawn for our farmer community”, with solar pumps and solarised feeders reducing diesel use and providing assured daytime power for irrigation. He also flagged efforts to light up remote and forested areas under the PM JANMAN scheme and detailed India’s push on energy storage, including large solar-and-battery projects such as the planned Ladakh installation designed to power an entire city.
Reaffirming India’s support for ISA, now a 124-country coalition, Yadav described it as a “global solar family” that is helping design projects, mobilise finance and create local jobs. Solar energy, he concluded, represents “hope, empowerment, independence, dignity and peace”.
Delegates from island nations welcomed India’s progress in solar energy and backed the SIDS Platform as a way to strengthen climate-resilient systems, support feasibility studies, build domestic skills and de-risk climate finance for small and vulnerable economies.