President Ram Nath Kovind launched Solar Charkha Mission under which Government will disburse subsidy of Rs 550 crore to thousands of artisans, generating employment in rural areas.

• It was launched during the event of Udyam Sangam (National MSME Conclave) on the occasion of World MSME Day (observed on 27 June).
• Under this mission, Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) will cover 50 clusters across the country including in the Northeast and each cluster will employ 400 to 2,000 artisans.
• Its ultimate aim is to generate employment in rural areas and contribute to the green economy. It also aims at linking five crore women across the country to the initiative.

The mission is expected to create one lakh jobs during the first two years. The geographical distribution of the clusters throughout the country, with at least 10% located in the North Eastern Region (NER), J&K and hilly states, will also be kept in view. Special focus will be given to 117 aspirational districts for soliciting project proposals under the scheme.