Mumbai, July 28 -- The Bengal government has launched the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana in the state, announcing additional financial assistance over and above the Centre's subsidy for households installing rooftop solar systems. The scheme, launched by the Prime Minister in February 2024, aims to expand rooftop solar capacity and reduce household power bills. It seeks to cover 10 million (mn) households nationwide and is presented as the flagship central effort to promote distributed renewable generation.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari reported that rooftop solar systems had already been installed in 1,810 households in the first phase. Under the state's subsidy structure, households installing systems generating up to 100 units will receive an additional Rs 5,000 over the Centre's Rs 30,000 subsidy, while 200-unit systems will attract Rs 10,000 extra against the Centre's Rs 60,000 and 300-unit systems will receive Rs 15,000 on top of the Centre's Rs 78,000. Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC and ST) households will receive a further Rs 15,000 from the state.
The chief minister indicated that the administration was considering separate assistance for economically disadvantaged families from other communities, and that the Chief Secretary and the Finance Secretary were examining a proposal ahead of a decision. North 24-Parganas led the first phase with 238 households, followed by Hooghly with 232, and beneficiaries were engaged through virtual interactions in which they reported falls in electricity bills and were encouraged to promote enrolment locally.
The Centre has set a target of covering 0.1 mn households in Bengal by March 31, 2027, but the state has signalled an ambition to reach 0.5 mn households. The scheme is intended to be extended to government offices to promote renewable energy use and curtail power consumption in the public sector. Adhikari also noted that Maharashtra currently has about 2.6 mn beneficiaries, a figure cited to illustrate differing levels of uptake across states.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Construction World.