Context

• Union Minister Shripad Yesso Naik said, a sum of ₹4,308.66 crore has been released as Central Financial Assistance (CFA) to around 5.54 lakh residential consumers under PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana as of January 2025. A total of 8.46 lakh households have benefitted under the scheme.

PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana

• World’s largest domestic rooftop solar initiative
•  Vision: To supply solar power to 1 crore households by March 2027. Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 February 2024
• Aim: To provide free electricity to households by facilitating the installation of rooftop solar panels.
•  Scheme offers a subsidy of up to 40% to households
•  The program is also expected to save the government ₹75,000 crores annually in electricity costs.

Benefits to participating households

• Free Electricity for Households
• Reduced Electricity Costs for the Government
• Increased Use of Renewable Energy
• Reduced Carbon Emissions

Expected Outcomes

•  Household Savings and Income Generation.
• Projected to add 30 GW of solar capacity through rooftop installations in the residential sector.
• It is estimated that the scheme will generate 1000 BUs of electricity while reducing CO2 emissions by 720 million tonnes.
• Scheme is also expected to create approximately 17 lakh direct jobs across various sectors.

Model Solar Village

• Component of PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.
• To establish one Model Solar Village per district throughout India. Allocation of ₹1 crore for each selected Model Solar Village.

Additional Info:

• Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh: India's first solar city
• Modhera, Gujarat: India's first solar-powered village
• Masali village, Gujarat: India's first solar border village
• Cochin International Airport in Kochi, Kerala: First fully solar-powered airport in the world

Major Initiatives related to Solar Energy

• National Solar Mission (2010)
• PM-KUSUM (2019)
• Solar Park Scheme (2014)
• Rooftop Solar Scheme (2014)

Energy Sources

Status of India in Solar Energy Sector

• India was the world's 3rd largest producer of solar power in 2023.
• India ranks 5th globally in installed power capacity, with 73 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacity.

Panchamrit of India

• Reduction of total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes to 2030.
• Reduction of the carbon intensity of the economy by 45% by 2030, over 2005 levels.
• Achieving the target of net zero emissions by 2070.
• Reach 500GW Non-fossil energy capacity by 2030.
• 50% of its energy requirements from renewable energy by 2030.