At a Glance
Four numbers behind the scheme’s target and its progress.
1 crore homes
The scheme’s target for rooftop solar installation across India.
₹75,021 crore outlay
Approved by the Union Cabinet on 29 February 2024.
₹78,000 subsidy cap
For a rooftop system of 3 kW or more, through two slabs.
40 lakh+ installed
As of 24 July 2026, with nearly 19 lakh households at zero electricity bills.
In this lesson
Timeline: 2024 Launch to 2026 Progress
From announcement to over 40 lakh installations
- 13 February 2024: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces the scheme.
- 29 February 2024: the Union Cabinet formally approves it, with an outlay of ₹75,021 crore.
- 10 March 2025: the scheme crosses its first big milestone, ten lakh homes now solarised.
- 24 July 2026: over 40 lakh installations are complete. Nearly 19 lakh households report zero electricity bills.
True or False: The Union Cabinet approved PM Surya Ghar with an outlay of over ₹75,000 crore.
The Target, Eligibility, and What You Get
Who qualifies, and what the scheme delivers
- PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana aims to put rooftop solar on one crore households, part of India’s broader solar energy push.
- The applicant must be an Indian citizen, with a residential address in the area covered by the scheme, and must own a house with a structurally sound rooftop suitable for solar panels.
- The household needs a valid electricity connection from its local DISCOM. The applicant must not have already availed a separate government solar subsidy for the same rooftop.
- The scheme covers residential rooftop capacity only. Commercial installations are not eligible.
- The scheme gives free electricity for up to 300 units every month, through net metering. The central subsidy is capped at ₹78,000, for a rooftop system of 3 kW or more.
- The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy runs the scheme, through the pmsuryaghar.gov.in portal.
True or False: PM Surya Ghar gives free electricity for up to 300 units every month, through net metering.
True or False: A household that has already received a separate government solar subsidy for its rooftop can still claim PM Surya Ghar’s subsidy for the same rooftop.
Loans, Model Solar Villages, and Training
Financing, rural showcases, and a skilled workforce
- Households can get collateral-free loans of up to ₹2 lakh, at around 6.75% interest. These loans are processed digitally, through 12 Public Sector Banks and the JanSamarth Portal.
- A “Model Solar Village” is planned for every district, to showcase rooftop solar adoption in rural India.
- Under the scheme’s capacity-building component, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy runs grassroot-level training on installation, operation, maintenance, and repair of rooftop solar systems.
- The goal is over 3 lakh skilled workers, through fresh skilling and up-skilling.
True or False: PM Surya Ghar’s capacity-building component aims to train over 3 lakh skilled workers.
How the Subsidy Scales, and Faster Rollout
A two-slab subsidy, and a much faster rollout
- The subsidy rises in two slabs. The first 2 kW earns ₹30,000 per kW; the next 1 kW adds ₹18,000 more.
- In practice, a 1-2 kW system earns ₹30,000 to ₹60,000 in subsidy. A 2-3 kW system earns ₹60,000 to ₹78,000.
- Rollout speed has improved sharply. One lakh installations now take about seven days, down from several months at launch.
- A steeper subsidy on the first 2 kW makes even a small, affordable rooftop system attractive to an average household. Tapering it on the next kW discourages oversized systems built mainly to capture subsidy money.
Think it through: why pay more per kW for the first 2 kW than the next 1 kW?
A steeper subsidy on the first 2 kW makes even a small, affordable rooftop system attractive to an average household, since most homes don’t need more than that to meaningfully cut their bill. Tapering the subsidy on the next kW discourages oversized systems built mainly to capture subsidy money rather than to meet real household demand.
Previous Year Questions
A trap examiners keep returning to: which scheme components are genuine, and which outlay figure belongs to which scheme.
- CSP 2025Tested three statements about PM Surya Ghar: the one-crore household target, MNRE’s grassroot training component, and the 3-lakh-plus skilled-manpower goal. All three are genuine, official components.
- Outlay trap₹75,021 crore is PM Surya Ghar’s own outlay. ₹19,744 crore instead belongs to the separate National Green Hydrogen Mission, approved in January 2023.
Current Affairs
Progress figures through 2026
- A June 2026 PIB backgrounder put the count at over 43 lakh households solarised under the scheme, with World Bank financing support. (Source: PIB)
- By December 2025, cumulative Central Financial Assistance disbursed under the scheme reached ₹14,771.82 crore, and over 7.7 lakh households had reached zero electricity bills.
- By 24 July 2026, over 40 lakh rooftop solar systems stood installed, with nearly 19 lakh households reporting zero electricity bills. Maharashtra and Gujarat lead the states, each crossing 4 lakh zero-bill households, followed by Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
True or False: UPSC CSP 2025 found all three tested statements about PM Surya Ghar to be correct.
True or False: As of July 2026, Maharashtra and Gujarat each crossed 4 lakh zero-electricity-bill households under PM Surya Ghar.
True or False: By December 2025, over ₹14,000 crore in Central Financial Assistance had been disbursed under PM Surya Ghar.
Quick Q&A
How many households does PM Surya Ghar target?
One crore households, for rooftop solar installation.
What is the maximum central subsidy, and at what capacity?
₹78,000, reached at a rooftop system of 3 kW or more.
Can a household double-dip on solar subsidies?
No. The scheme excludes rooftops that already received a separate government solar subsidy.
Who runs the scheme, and through what portal?
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, through pmsuryaghar.gov.in.
Which states lead on zero-electricity-bill households?
Maharashtra and Gujarat, each past 4 lakh, ahead of Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
🎲 Practice: PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana
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