Delhi Approves 100% Free Rooftop Solar for Households Using Up to 400 Units
On September 1, 2026, the Delhi Cabinet approved a sweeping overhaul of the city’s renewable energy strategy through the second amendment to the Delhi Solar Energy Policy, 2023. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta announced that households consuming an average of up to 400 units of electricity per month are now eligible to receive a 3 kW rooftop solar system completely free of charge.
The move is specifically engineered to remove the high initial capital barrier that previously kept middle and lower-middle-income families out of the solar transition.
The Financial Breakdown: How It Becomes Free
Eligible consumers face zero upfront installation costs. The financial burden is entirely absorbed by a combination of Central and State funds:
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Central Subsidy: ₹78,000 provided under the PM Surya Ghar scheme.
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State Capital Subsidy: An additional ₹78,000 matched by the Delhi government.
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State Top-Up: Any remaining balance required to complete the 3 kW installation is covered by a special Delhi government top-up fund.
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Maintenance: Selected, authorized vendors will handle the installation and provide free system maintenance for the first five years.
Key Targets and Infrastructure Upgrades
The government has set an aggressive deployment timeline, aiming to install these systems on 2.3 lakh rooftops and add 500 MW of rooftop solar capacity to the grid by March 2027.
To accelerate adoption and reduce bureaucratic friction, the policy introduces several operational upgrades:
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Faster Approvals: The net-metering approval window has been drastically slashed from 75 days to just 25 days.
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Fee Waivers: Registration fees for all systems have been completely waived.
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Grid Earnings: Households consuming up to 200 units will continue to receive free electricity, with the added benefit of earning money from the excess power their new solar systems export back to the grid.