JAMMU: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, today chaired a UT Level Coordination Committee (UTLCC) meeting of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.
He emphasised upon brisk awareness generation for optimal utilisation of benefits by public being offered under this flagship scheme.
The meeting, besides the Principal Secretary, PDD and Commissioner Secretary, IT Department, was attended by Deputy Commissioners, MD, JPDCL/KPDCL; CEO, JAKEDA; Chief Engineers of JPDCL/KPDCL and representatives from NHPC and other implementation agencies.
The Chief Secretary urged the two DISCOMS to make their ground level staff responsible for creating awareness among the general public. He also advised them to encourage the registered consumers to make agreements followed by payments and assist them in subsequent installation of Rooftop Solar (RTS) plants through the chosen vendors.
He stressed on making all the success stories public where people had been successful in reducing their energy bills substantially. He further asked for reducing the waiting period for the consumers after submission of applications on their part and swift disbursal of the subsidy into their accounts.
The Chief Secretary also took a live demonstration of the National portal meant for the implementation of PM Surya Ghar Yojana (PMSGY). He made out that the respective DISCOMS should not hesitate in reaching out to the registered consumers individually to encourage them to go ahead with the successful installation of RTS in their homes.
Regarding solarisation of government buildings, he underscored the need for allotment of all the works proposed under Capex and bringing pace in the implementation of the RESCO model on the ground. He called upon the JAKEDA to closely monitor the progress and take weekly appraisals to enhance its implementation here.
Dulloo further pointed out that the scheme is in vogue here for a substantial period of time and it is expected that the tangible results as per the set targets are achieved without showing any laxity. Earlier, Principal Secretary, PDD, H.Rajesh Prasad, informed the meeting about the achievements of the Department in the implementation of this scheme. He made out that the PM-Surya Ghar Yojana is a key flagship program to boost solar energy use by domestic consumers across the country.
The Principal Secretary further remarked that this initiative has attracted widespread participation, with the Jammu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (JPDCL) receiving 19,076 applications, equivalent to 66.77 MW of solar capacity. The Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited (KPDCL) has recorded 17,746 applications, totalling 56.787 MW across the region.
He stated that in order to facilitate this growth, 502 solar PV vendors have been registered under both JPDCL and KPDCL, including at the national level, with JPDCL acting as the central agency for vendor enrollment, a process that continues to expand.
About the phenomenal success of this scheme, Managing Director, JPDCL, Choudhary Yasin, informed the meeting that 1438 consumers had received zero-sum bills for their consumption due to the RTS installed in their homes.
He further made out that, on average, 47 SRTs are installed daily with a commissioning rate of 54 SRTs per day, with 294 and 202 consumers already disbursed the Centre and UT subsidy, respectively, in their bank accounts.
MD, KPDCL, Mehmood Ahmad Shah, revealed that under this scheme, KPDCL has completed 1,199 installations, so far.
Giving district-wise highlights, he informed that Budgam leads with 16.07% progress (95 installations). He made out that with the improvement in weather conditions, the pace would increase considerably now.
Meanwhile, JPDCL reported 1,573 installations with district Kishtwar topping the list with 88 installations.
Pertinently, PM-Surya Ghar Yojana has driven the installation of 2,772 rooftop solar plants across the region, generating a combined capacity of 10.38 MW. Of these, 2,489 plants are fully operational, with JPDCL commissioning 1,389 and KPDCL activating 1,100 SRTs.
Additionally, 14,961 applicants have chosen vendors for their solar setups, 9,410 under JPDCL and 5,551 under KPDCL, while subsidies have been disbursed to 1,144 consumers, including 294 in JPDCL and 850 in KPDCL areas.
It was added that the financial backing under PMSGY had been robust, with JPDCL processing 1,568 bank accounts and disbursing Rs 2,654.38 lakh across Jammu districts from October 31, 2024 to March 21, 2025. Similarly, in Kashmir, KPDCL has handled 942 accounts, releasing Rs 1,847.19 lakh by March 10, 2025.
Parallel to the PM-Surya Ghar scheme, Commissioner Secretary, IT Department, Saurabh Bhagat, revealed that the solarization of government buildings in the UT is advancing rapidly.
Out of 22,494 buildings proposed for solar upgrades, 12,994 are being tackled under the Capex mode with 4,673 already completed, boasting a capacity of 39.6 megawatts (MW). An additional 9,500 buildings are slated for the RESCO (Renewable Energy Service Company) mode, targeting a tentative capacity of 200 MW, he informed.
Regarding implementation strategy, he apprised the meeting that the responsibilities had been split between NHPC, managing 35 MW across 1,500 buildings and JAKEDA (Jammu and Kashmir Energy Development Agency), overseeing 175 MW for 8,000 buildings. This strategic mix of CAPEX and RESCO approaches ensures both scalability and efficiency, bringing solar power to public infrastructure on a massive scale, he added.
About the Model Solar Village initiative, it was given out that the same aims to transform rural India by solarizing one village per district. The district-wise details of the villages participating in this contest were also presented with respective feedback from the concerned Deputy Commissioners.
The program promotes clean energy access with solar-powered home lighting, water systems, agricultural pumps and streetlights. By creating 24×7 solar-powered villages, it empowers communities to generate electricity locally, cutting costs and reliance on external utilities, as informed in the meeting.
