New Delhi: With around 35 lakh solar rooftop installations complete under PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGMBY), the fiscal year 2026-27 is likely to see an accelerated pace of implementation and more installations under the Utility-Led Aggregation (ULA) model of the scheme. At a press conference on Wednesday, Minister for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi said that from a current pace of 11,000-12,000 rooftop solar installations per day, the pace of implementation is expected to go up to 15,000-16,000 per day as the government would push states to adopt the ULA model.
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Under ULA model, DISCOMs or state-designated entities install rooftop solar systems on behalf of individual residential households that either cannot afford or do not have the infrastructure for setting up rooftop solar systems.
The PM Surya Ghar scheme aims to provide solar power to one crore households free-of-cost by March 31, 2027 by setting up rooftop solar systems. With the deadline just a year away, the government is aiming to speed up installations to reach the target. “We should be able to cover another 30 lakh households in the next three-four months. Combine that with the 35 lakh households under the scheme so far (which works out to 65 lakh households), we will be able to close the gap by March (2027),” said the minister.
The ULA model has been in place since 2025, however, limited installations have taken place under the scheme component. According to a written reply submitted by Joshi in Parliament in March, the Centre has sanctioned just 12.58 lakh installations under ULA model across states like, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Kerala, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Ladakh, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Telangana, Bihar and Tripura.
The uptick in installations gains importance as Decentralised Renewable Energy (DRE) comprised a significant 36 percent of total Renewable Energy (RE) installations in FY2025-26. While India added 44.6 GW of RE capacity in the last fiscal year, 16.3 GW comprised of DRE installations under PM-KUSUM (7.6 GW) and PMSGMBY (8.7 GW).
While stating that around 40 GW of RE projects have unsigned Power Sale Agreements (PSAs), the minister exuded optimism about completing the signing of 10-12 GW of such agreements in the next three-four months. He said that PSAs are in place for 230 GW out of 275 GW of installed renewable energy capacity. Joshi added that solar energy is now powering trains during solar hours as direct PSAs have been signed with Indian Railways for electrification of trains.
India ranks third globally in Renewable Energy Installed Capacity, according to the Renewable Energy Statistics 2026, moving ahead of Brazil in the ranking, said the minister. India achieved a record capacity addition of 55.3 GW in the non-fossil segment during FY 2025–26. The minister also highlighted that in July 2025, India reached its highest-ever renewable energy share in electricity generation. The renewables met 51.5 percent of the country’s total electricity demand of 203 GW.
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“India’s total power generation during 2025-26 (up to March 2026) reached 1,845.921 BU. The share of non-fossil fuels in total generation reached 29.2 percent in 2025-26 (538.97 BU),” said the minister. So far, a total of 283.46 GW of capacity from non-fossil fuel sources has been installed in the country as on March 31. This includes 274.68 GW of Renewable Energy (150.26 GW solar power, 56.09 GW wind power, 11.75 GW bio-energy, 5.17 GW small hydro power, 51.41 GW large hydro power) and 8.78 GW nuclear power capacity.