Industry executives suggest that though Tamil Nadu has performed strongly in utility-scale renewable energy, it has lagged in household solar adoption compared to peers | Photo Credit: Liffy Thomas

The Tamil Nadu government’s move to supplement the PM Surya Ghar rooftop solar scheme with its own State level subsidy of upto ₹22,000 is expected to significantly bolster household solar additions in the State.

In an official notification recently, the State government approved a proposal to support rooftop solar installation with subsidies of ₹5,000, ₹10,000 and ₹22,000 for 1 kW, 2kW and 3kW systems respectively. This will be over and above the PM Surya Ghar subsidies of ₹30,000, ₹60,000 and ₹78,000 respectively. 

Speaking to businessline, industry executives suggest that though Tamil Nadu has performed strongly in utility-scale renewable energy, it has lagged in household solar adoption compared to peers. They believe that while the additional financial support is a step in the right direction, creating initiatives to increase awareness about the scheme will be critical to boost overall adoption. 

P Sivakumar, President of Tamil Nadu Solar Energy Developers Association (TNSEDA) and CEO of Shriram Solar suggests that the combined subsidies can cut as much as half the costs of installing rooftop solar systems. 

“The key will be to release the funds as quickly as the Central government,” he said. The Tamil Nadu government has allocated ₹50 crore towards the implementation of the State subsidy

Sivakumar added that as of yet the Tamil Nadu government has not initiated any advertisements or awareness campaigns for the scheme. 

“This is particularly critical. While the additional subsidy will reduce the initial investment and improve the financial proposition, it is important to build awareness and consumer confidence to encourage installations especially in Tier 2 and Tier 3 locations,” he added. 

Arulkumar Shanmugasundaram, CEO & Managing Director, SWELECT Energy Systems Ltd suggests that beyond just the headline subsidy amount, factors like eligibility, financing options, ease of application, disbursement speed alongside net metering arrangements will play a role. 

He added that in States like Tamil Nadu, existing subsidised or free-power benefits may have reduced the immediate financial motivation for households to invest in rooftop solar. 

“Where households already receive subsidised power, rooftop solar must be positioned as a long-term investment in energy independence — not only immediate bill savings,” he added. 

Meanwhile, multiple other States have also introduced additional subsidies for rooftop solar. Uttar Pradesh provides an additional subsidy of ₹15,000 per kW capped at ₹30,000 per house while Gujarat provides ₹10,000 per kW, capped at a maximum of ₹20,000 per residential consumer. Maharashtra and Delhi also have similar incentive programmes. 

As of March 2026, Tamil Nadu recorded 60,151 installations under PM Surya Ghar, significantly lower than States like Gujarat (5,94,966) Maharashtra (4,90,666) Uttar Pradesh (4,21,093) and Kerala (2,09,716). 

Interestingly, this is not the first time that the Tamil Nadu government rolled out a State-level subsidy for rooftop solar.

Former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in 2013 had announced the ‘Capital Incentive Scheme’ to promote solar energy among domestic consumers by giving a capital subsidy of ₹20,000 per kW for grid-connected photo voltaic systems in the State.

Published on September 21, 2026