Context

• SAEL plans an 8200 crore Investment for setting up a new Integrated Facility in Uttar Pradesh, Greater Noida.

About the News

• SAEL Industries Limited, through its subsidiary SAEL Solar P6 Private Limited, will invest approximately ₹8,200 crores to establish an integrated solar manufacturing facility under the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA).
• The facility, located in Greater Noida, will include a 5 GW solar cell manufacturing unit and a 5 GW solar module manufacturing line.
• Once it becomes operational, SAEL’s total solar manufacturing capacity will increase to 8.5 GW.
• The plant will produce TOPCon (Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact) solar cells, known for their high efficiency, which will be assembled into solar panels in the company’s own module manufacturing line.

Solar Capacity and Plants in Uttar Pradesh

• Solar capacity surged from approximately 288 MW in 2017 to ~2,653 MW by March 2025, showing a near tenfold increase in solar capacity.
• As of early 2025, around 1,100 MW are operational across 17 ground-mounted solar plants.
• The Sector has also created around 7500 hunf\dred jobs in this sector.

State targets and Policy Directions

• The state aims to achieve 2,200 MW by 2027 under Solar Energy Policy‑2022.
• The State also aims to achieve 22,000 MW by 2027, and even a long‑term 500 GW target by 2030 supported through MoUs with international partners.
• The state launched tenders to build ~440 MW floating solar across six water bodies; plans eventually include 10,000 MW of reservoir-based solar.
• Solar Along Infrastructure: Feasibility studies underway to install 450 MW solar along Bundelkhand Expressway.

Key Projects and Regions

Bundelkhand Solar Hub

• State Government has initiated projects totaling 4,000 MW in districts like Jhansi, Chitrakoot, Lalitpur, and Jalaun.
• Flagship plants include:
  • 600 MW Jhansi Solar by TUSCO (operational Jan 2025).
  • 100 MW Fourth Partner Energy in Babina .
  • 135 MW Sun Source Energy project.

Industrial Solar Zones

• UPSIDA approved 13 solar plants across key industrial clusters (Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Moradabad, etc.), including a model 150 kW plant in Kanpur.

Context

• To increase green cover in Uttar Pradesh, State Government will constitute a committee of senior officials from various departments and rate cities according to their green cover.

About the News

• The state government will conduct a geospatial baseline survey to map parks, green belts, heat zones, water bodies, etc.
• The State government will launch a quarterly Green Star Rating System to evaluate municipal green efforts.
• The plan aims to initiate tree-planting, landscaping, heat island mitigation, and biodiversity enhancement.

Ambitious Plantation Campaigns

• The “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam 2.0” drive continues with a goal of planting 37 crore saplings in July 2025. Since 2017, over 210 crore saplings have been planted across UP, expanding green cover by 500,000 acres. Innovative measures include geo-tagging, Green Gold Certificates for newborns, and carbon credit incentives for farmers.
• As part of Van Mahotsav 2025 (July 1–7), the state aimed to plant 35 crore saplings, supported by 2,586 nurseries and dedicated expressway tree-plantings—1.2 lakh along Bundelkhand Expressway, totalling over 50 lakh roadside saplings.

Forest Cover in Uttar Pradesh

• Forests occupy 15,045.8 km/sq, covering 6.24% area of the state
• The state Tree Cover is 8950.9 sq/km covering 3.72% area of the state.
• Combined tree cover of the state is 23,996.7 sq/km covering 9.96% of state area.

Major Gains

• The state has gained E\expansion of +559 km² in combined forest and tree cover since 2021—UP ranks second in India, just behind Chhattisgarh.
• The Forest cover now stands at 15,045.80 km² (6.24% of state area), up from 14,927.37 km² (6.20%) in 2021—an increase of 118.43 km².
• Tree cover (outside forests) rose by 440.76 km², now totaling 8,950.92 km² (3.72%), up from 8,510.16 km² .
• Overall green cover is now nearly 23,996.72 km² (9.96%) of the state's geographical area 
• Tree cover outside designated forests increased by 3.72% by 2023, slightly surpassing the national average of 3.41%.

Role In State Economy

• The forestry sector contributed nearly ₹25,859 crore to UP’s GSDP in 2023‑24—a 3.9% increase, driven by productivity in districts like Sonbhadra and Lakhimpur Kheri.

Context

• Uttar Pradesh has been named joint No. 1 in the country for executing the ODOP 2024 scheme, alongside Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Punjab.

About the News

• Siddharthnagar earned a bronze award for its efforts in reviving Kalanamak rice, a GI‑tagged aromatic rice variety. Cultivation swelled from 2,000 hectares to nearly 20,000 hectares, greatly benefiting farmers.
• Since 2018, UP’s exports have nearly doubled, from ₹88,967 crore to ₹171,000 crore in FY 2023–24—ODOP products playing a central role.
• Over 200+ Common Facility Centres sanctioned, with over 100,000 artisans trained and equipped, contributing significantly to e-commerce sales (₹2 000 crore annually via Amazon & Flipkart)

About ODOP Scheme

• One District One Product (ODOP) is a flagship programme of the Government of Uttar Pradesh. It was launched in 2018, with an aim to preserve, develop and promote local arts, crafts, and traditional skills of communities.
• ODOP is aimed at creating product-specific traditional industrial hubs across 75 districts of the State that will promote traditional industries that are synonymous with the respective districts of the state.

Objective of the Scheme

• Preservation and development of local crafts/skills and promotion of art.
• Increase in incomes and local employment (resulting in a decline in migration for employment).
• Improvement in product quality and skill development.
• Transforming the products in an artistic way (through packaging, branding).
• To connect the production with tourism (live demo and sales outlet – gifts and souvenir).
• To resolve the issues of economic differences and regional imbalance.
• To take the concept of ODOP to the national and international level after successful implementation at the State level.

Transformation due to ODOP SCHEME

• The MSME sector plays an important role in the economy of the state and is a significant contributor to capital investment, production and employment. In terms of numbers of MSME units (about 46 lakh units, 8%), Uttar Pradesh stands first in the country.
• Uttar Pradesh has been a leading state in the export of handicrafts, processed food, engineering goods, carpet, readymade garments and leather products, manufactured in these MSMEs.
• Almost each district in the State has one or more unique products – be it in the handicrafts, handlooms or agriculture/horticulture produce or small enterprises, with distinct identity at national and international levels.
• For example, the silk sarees of Varanasi, the handicraft items of brass from Moradabad, the flute of Pilibhit, and Kala Namak rice from Siddhartha Nagar etc. MSMEs are best placed to manufacture and export these products at district level.
• 5 lakh youth have established their ventures under ODOP by receiving loans under Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, Stand Up, and Startup India.
• Some of the popular products of certain districts including Kala Namak rice of Siddharthanagar, Terracotta of Gorakhpur, and Chikankari of Lucknow have got the much-needed impetus under the ODOP scheme.

ODOP 2.0

• Dedicated budget allocation for skill-upgrade, financing, toolkits, packaging, branding, and marketing
  
• This also includes second‑stage loans for entrepreneurs who completed the first tranche successfully
  
• It will help in launching/upgrading Common Facility Centres (e.g., in Unnao, Bijnor, Gonda)
  
• The state will provide an enhanced e‑portal for trainee selection, training collaborations, and exports push.