NEW DELHI: Around 1 crore households will receive free electricity up to 300 units every month under the Rooftop Solarisation and Free Electricity scheme, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday.
The minister, while presenting the interim budget 2024 said that the move will save households between Rs 15,000 and Rs 18,000 by providing free solar electricity and allowing them to sell surplus electricity to DISCOMs.
“Through rooftop solarization, one crore households will be enabled to obtain up to 300 units free electricity every month. This scheme follows the resolve of Hon’ble Prime Minister on the historic day of consecration of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya,” said the finance minister.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the scheme to install solar panels on one crore houses across the country as part of the government's Pradhanmantri Suryodaya Yojana. This was the first decision the Prime Minister took after completing the grand Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha ceremony (consecration ceremony) in Ayodhya.
State-run Rural Electrification Corporation Limited has been designated as the nodal agency for the Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana, aiming to install rooftop solar systems in 10 million households.
Rooftop solar involves the installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on the roof of a building or home. Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana, a new scheme aimed at providing electricity to low and middle-income individuals through solar rooftop installations.