PM Surya Ghar Initiative: RWAs and DISCOMs Drive Rooftop Solar for Zero Power Bills

PM Surya Ghar city push: RWAs, DISCOMs race to deliver 'zero power bill’ homes Urban bodies convene RWAs, vendors and DISCOMs to fast-track rooftop solar approvals, activate higher subsidies and link cheap loans, as households chase zero electricity bills under the revamped PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana.

City administrations across India are moving from awareness to coordination mode under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, as they chase the promise of up to 300 free electricity units a month and “zero power bill” homes. Recent meetings now bring together resident welfare associations, DISCOMs and empanelled vendors to clear bottlenecks in rooftop solar approvals and speed up subsidy disbursal into household bank accounts.

The push comes as the Centre reports more than 16.7 lakh beneficiaries already using rooftop solar systems under the scheme and receiving over ₹9,280 crore in central financial assistance. Officials say the national portal, higher subsidy slabs up to ₹78,000, and subsidised loans around 7% are now being backed by on-ground city campaigns, neighbourhood workshops and RWA-led group sign‑ups.

PM Surya Ghar rooftop solar subsidy slabs and zero-bill promise

The core design of PM Surya Ghar aims to install rooftop solar on one crore homes by 2026‑27 and give each eligible household up to 300 free electricity units monthly. Central guidelines now fix standard subsidy amounts rather than percentages, with the maximum subsidy for individual homes capped at ₹78,000 for systems of 3 kW and above in most states.

Under amended central financial assistance norms, households in general category states receive ₹30,000 per kW for the first 2 kW, and ₹18,000 per kW for the next 1 kW, with no subsidy beyond 3 kW. Special category states and Union Territories get slightly higher support, at ₹33,000 per kW for the first 2 kW and ₹19,800 for the next kilowatt.

Several state and city portals describe similar figures in rupee terms, emphasizing that a 3 kW rooftop system attracts the maximum central subsidy of ₹78,000 for most households. A dedicated central website, pmsuryaghar.gov.in, serves as the single entry point for applicants, while state nodal agencies and DISCOMs provide additional top‑up support in some regions.

How PM Surya Ghar portal, RWAs and DISCOMs speed rooftop approvals

The application journey starts on the PM Surya Ghar national rooftop portal, where consumers register using their electricity connection number, mobile and Aadhaar details. Applicants choose their state DISCOM, upload recent bills, and then select an empanelled vendor listed for their service area. Technical feasibility approval from the DISCOM precedes installation, net‑metering and subsidy release.

Once rooftop panels and inverters are installed, the DISCOM carries out inspection, synchronises the system with the grid and installs or reconfigures the net meter. After commissioning is recorded on the portal, the central subsidy is credited directly to the beneficiary’s bank account, often within weeks, while any state top‑up follows separately. Banks linked to the scheme extend collateral‑free loans up to about ₹2 lakh at around 6.75–7% interest.

To address slow processing, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has repeatedly tweaked implementation guidelines. July 2025 amendments allowed states and Union Territories to supplement central aid with their own subsidies and explicitly opened central support for RWAs and group housing societies for common facilities like lighting and electric vehicle charging, capped at 500 kW per complex.

Earlier, new payment options had been introduced under RESCO and utility‑led aggregation models, where third‑party companies or DISCOMs handle installation and maintenance, and households pay mainly for energy use instead of upfront capital. Union minister Pralhad Joshi wrote on X, “Rs 4,950 crore incentives to Discoms under @PMSuryaGhar. The guidelines have been issued for effective disbursal of incentives,” highlighting parallel support for utilities.

City-level PM Surya Ghar push: Chandigarh, Jaipur, Lucknow show the template

Chandigarh is among the clearest examples of a structured city‑level push. On 2 December 2025, the administration convened around 80 RWA representatives at a stakeholders’ meeting chaired by the UT’s Secretary for Science and Technology and Renewable Energy. Presentations by CREST and the engineering department focused on achieving “zero electricity bills” for homeowners using rooftop solar.

Officials disclosed that 148 of 673 early beneficiaries in Chandigarh had already recorded zero power bills within nine months of adoption. The presentation highlighted digital signing of power purchase agreements, quicker inspections, waiver of meter testing fees and tighter coordination with the national portal to cut approval timelines. Attendees also raised roof‑rights issues in housing board flats and urged alternative documentation options for tenants and power of attorney holders.

Rajasthan has paired the central scheme with an aggressive state‑level offer. Food and civil supplies minister Sumit Godara announced, “Over 1.04 crore registered domestic consumers will benefit from this decision… Families that earlier received 100 units of free electricity will now receive 150 units without paying a single rupee.”

Explaining the rooftop component, he said around 27 lakh households with higher consumption would receive 1.1 kW rooftop plants entirely free, combining ₹33,000 central subsidy with ₹17,000 from the state to meet system cost. Godara added that, for such consumers, bills up to 150 units monthly would drop to zero, while Rajasthan’s DISCOMs recently raised tariffs paid for surplus solar units to improve returns.

In Uttar Pradesh, where rooftop solar capacity under PM Surya Ghar has now crossed 1 GW, more than 9.7 lakh applications have been filed, supported by both central and state subsidies. A recent analysis for 3 kW systems in the state estimates a payback period of about 20 months, significantly faster than the national average of roughly 30 months.

State-wise payback examples under PM Surya Ghar rooftop solar

Different state combinations of tariff, subsidy and sunshine hours mean payback varies sharply for rooftop owners. In Chandigarh, CREST’s presentation to RWAs pegged the payback for typical residential systems at under five years, with some consumers even experiencing negative bills when exports to the grid exceeded their own consumption in high‑generation months.

Uttar Pradesh’s higher solar radiation, stepped‑up state subsidy and strong adoption have helped compress payback further. A recent note on the state’s performance estimates that a 3 kW installation recovers its net cost in around 20 months with combined subsidies, compared with roughly 54 months if a similar system were installed without any support.

In Rajasthan, the state’s decision to fully subsidise 1.1 kW systems for about 27 lakh higher‑consumption households effectively eliminates upfront cost, making the payback immediate for the subsidised capacity. Further savings then depend on how many units households offset above 150 free units and the updated rates DISCOMs now pay for surplus solar power exported to the grid.

Policy analysts caution that payback for very small systems or low‑consumption households can still stretch, sometimes towards a decade, because savings per unit of installed capacity remain modest. However, they underline that the combination of higher subsidy caps, cheaper loans and city‑level coordination through RWAs and DISCOMs is steadily shifting rooftop solar from a niche investment to a mainstream household upgrade across Indian towns and cities.

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