It is therefore welcome news that the government plans to make available a 30 per cent subsidy for installing solar panels on rooftops for household use, with the promise that the cost waiver could be increased to 50 per cent if all states show encouraging signs of implementing the proposal. The proposal is in keeping with the prime minister's National Action Plan on Climate Change, that sets great store by solar energy initiatives to reduce polluting emissions from fossil fuels like coal and oil. The ministry of new and renewable energy is planning to generate 1,000 MW of solar energy by 2013 and 20,000 MW by 2022. To subsidise the cost of photovoltaics is a good way to initiate investment and interest in solar energy. However, long-term solutions have to be based on cheaper technology. Collaborative projects with countries like Germany where considerable effort has gone into honing solar panel technology including attempts to replace silicon with hair that is a better conductor and costs almost nothing to produce more affordable panels with newer materials would help bring down costs.