Rooftop solar news, read against our daily PM Surya Ghar tracker.
One piece of news at a time, local, Indian or global, checked against the PM Surya Ghar numbers we have read every day since 29 August 2026. Then what it could mean, and what it means for you.
Stories, newest first
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India
Subsidy rooftops need Indian panels. Inverters and batteries may be next
The government is considering Indian-made inverters and batteries for the next phase of PM Surya Ghar, but the rules have not been finalised and the current phase is set to run to 31 March 2027. The inverter rule in force today is about data, not origin: makers had to confirm to REC, the scheme's national agency, that inverter data is stored in India, so ask your brand for that confirmation before your next subsidy quote.
1,18,083new rooftops across India, 10 to 17 Oct 2026. Each needs an inverter, on our own assumption -
India
The same rooftop solar loan takes 12 days at one bank and 44 at another
A government document reviewed by Mint says a rooftop solar loan took 12 days to process and pay out at one bank and 44 at another, and the finance ministry has asked all banks to bring it under 10, from about 17 days at public sector banks and 19 at private banks. For installers, and for homeowners who borrow, that puts the loan at the start of the job, not the end.
12 to 44days to process a rooftop solar loan and pay it out, at five banks, as Mint reported on 9 Oct 2026 -
Local
CHB houses in Chandigarh no longer need the Board's NOC for rooftop solar
The Chandigarh Housing Board no longer asks for its NOC or prior approval before rooftop solar goes up on any of its homes, more than 66,000 by The Tribune's count, under an order dated 13 October 2026; the work goes through CREST, the UT's renewable energy society, under the national scheme's rules. That removes a step for houses and flats alike, but for a flat the order is silent on the shared roof, which an earlier CHB rule tied to the consent of every allottee in the block.
66,000+CHB houses that no longer need the Housing Board's NOC to put up rooftop solar, as The Tribune reports -
Local
One 50 MW PEDA solar tender is about half of Punjab's PM Surya Ghar rooftops
PEDA wants bids by 29 October 2026 for 50 MW of RESCO solar on Punjab government buildings, on rooftops or the ground, where a developer owns the plants and the buildings buy their power for 25 years: about half the capacity on all of Punjab's homes under the national scheme. Few small installers may bid, but the winners could need local crews, stock and service long after the bid: in J&K, where a 152 MW plan of the same kind has work orders out, officials are now pressing for meters and power purchase agreements.
50 MWin one PEDA tender, against 95 MW on all of Punjab's home rooftops under the national scheme, 14 Oct 2026 reading -
Local
Punjab's evening power surcharge for factories stops on 16 October
It is easy to assume that evening power always costs more. In Punjab, factories above 50 kVA and large commercial connections pay Rs 2.00 a unit (kVAh) extra for power used between 6 and 10 in the evening, but only from 16 June to 15 October. So from 16 October, a factory battery in Punjab is about covering power cuts and storing solar, not a dearer evening; in Jammu and Kashmir, the evening surcharge for industry runs all year.
4 monthsof the year when Punjab's factories above 50 kVA pay Rs 2.00 a kVAh more in the evening: 16 Jun to 15 Oct -
India
DCR panels need Indian cells, and India is short of them
Every PM Surya Ghar subsidy rooftop needs DCR panels made with Indian solar cells, and India has approved about 6 GW of panel capacity for every 1 GW of cell capacity. At last month's pace, a year of rooftops would add about 17 GW, nearly half of the approved cell capacity. Our counter shows no lasting slowdown, so any squeeze could show first in DCR prices and waiting times.
6 to 1approved panel capacity to approved cell capacity on India's ALMM lists, Sep 2026 -
Local
Shraddh to Navratri: Punjab solar applications rose, still below September
During Shraddh, 27 Sep to 10 Oct 2026, Punjab started about 1 in 7 fewer rooftop solar applications than in the two weeks before, while installs did not slow. Updated 19 Oct: In the first week of Navratri, 11 to 17 Oct, applications rose to about 48 a day: up from about 45 during Shraddh, still below about 53 a day before Shraddh. A customer who said “after Shraddh” or “after Navratri” is worth a call now.
48 a daynew Punjab rooftop solar applications in Navratri week one: up from about 45 in Shraddh, below about 53 before it -
Local
Punjab's September power cuts: solar sign-ups did not move
Punjab lived through two weeks of power cuts in September, yet new rooftop solar applications stayed close to 50 a day. A standard on-grid system switches off when the grid does, so it was never the answer to a cut.
54 and 50new Punjab rooftop solar applications a day, during the cuts and after -
India
60 lakh households or 51.7 lakh rooftops? Both are right
In early October the news said India's rooftop solar scheme had reached 60 lakh households. Our daily counter shows 51.7 lakh rooftops. Both numbers are correct. They count different things.
9.6 lakhmore households than rooftops on the national counter, 10 Oct 2026 reading -
India
Did rooftop solar slow in September? What the daily counter shows
On 7 October a report said new rooftop solar fell for a second month. Counted per day, September ran level with August; it simply had one day fewer. Here is what the 10 days after it looked like, and why that is still too short to call.
16,500new rooftops a day in the 10 days to 10 Oct, against about 14,600 a day in September -
India
RBI rate hike and a Rs 2 lakh solar loan: about Rs 25 more a month
The RBI raised its repo rate by 0.25 points on 7 Oct. Rooftop solar loans of up to Rs 2 lakh under the national scheme are tied to that rate, and on a 10-year loan the change works out to about Rs 25 more a month.
+Rs 25a month on a Rs 2 lakh, 10-year solar loan at the bank's next reset. An example, not a quote. -
Global
Australia fits 153 home batteries per 100 new rooftops. What could that mean for India?
In the first half of 2026, Australian homes added more batteries than new solar systems. India's rooftop market is younger and built differently, but the same question may come here in time: what goes on a roof that already has solar?
153home batteries for every 100 new rooftop solar systems in Australia, Jan to Jun 2026