California receives mixed reviews on solar power

Reporting from Sacramento—

California is on track to meet an ambitious goal of putting solar panels on up to 3 million Golden State homes by 2016, according to a new report by an environmental group.

The $3.3-billion initiative, which provides subsidies to homeowners, has spurred the installation of 800 megawatts of rooftop panels over the last five years. That's the energy equivalent of two gas-burning power plants.

India: With accent on renewable sources of energy, the solar sector in India is poised to grow at a significant pace

Solar power is one of the most talked about topics in India today. With peak power deficit hovering around the 12 per cent and increasing fossil fuel costs, the government is aggressively pushing for renewable sources of energy. Of the 182 GW of total installed power generation capacity in India, renewables constitute about 11 per cent. However, the installed solar capacity still has less than 1 per cent share in the total renewable energy installed capacity.