Home · Guides · Punjab rooftop solar

Rooftop solar in Punjab: up to ₹78,000 from the Centre, 300 free units, and what PSPCL pays for leftover credit

What a home in Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala, Bathinda or Mohali can claim, how free power changes the maths, and how PSPCL settles surplus credit once a year.

Last updated: 1 November 2026 · Luminity

Punjab households installing rooftop solar get the standard central subsidy under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, up to ₹78,000 for a 3 kW system. We found no state top-up on record. What makes Punjab different is free power: most homes already get up to 300 units a month at no cost, so whether solar pays depends on how much you use.

The other rule worth knowing is how surplus is handled. The Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) does not let Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd (PSPCL) pay for exports bill by bill. Surplus is carried forward through a settlement year from October to September, and only what is left at the end is paid for, at 75% of the feed-in tariff PSERC approves for that year.

Take-up has been slow for a state of Punjab’s size. By 31 July 2026 Punjab had 26,904 applications on the national portal and 17,487 systems installed, covering 17,496 households with 78.18 MW, and ₹112.62 crore of central subsidy had been released, according to figures the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy gave the Lok Sabha.

As on 1 November 2026: central subsidy ₹30,000 for 1 kW, ₹60,000 for 2 kW, ₹78,000 for 3 kW and above. No state top-up found. Leftover credit at the end of the October-September settlement period is paid at 75% of PSERC’s feed-in tariff within 30 days. Figures can change; PSPCL, PSERC and the national portal have the final word.

What you get

System size	Central subsidy (₹)	Benchmark cost (₹)
1 kW	30,000	50,000
2 kW	60,000	1,00,000
3 kW and above	78,000 (maximum)	1,45,000 for 3 kW
Housing societies and RWAs (common facilities, up to 500 kW at 3 kW per house)	18,000 per kW	-

On MNRE’s benchmark, a 3 kW system works out to about ₹67,000 after the subsidy. Your vendor’s quote and the portal decide the real numbers, and nothing extra is paid above 3 kW. PM Surya Ghar is approved to run until 2026-27, which ends on 31 March 2027.

Free power and solar: do the maths first

For 2026-27 the Punjab government continues to fund free electricity for homes, under its letter to PSERC of 4 March 2026:

All domestic homes get up to 600 units every two months (300 a month) free, along with fixed charges, meter rent and government levies.
SC, BC, non-SC BPL and freedom fighter homes that go over the limit pay only for the units above 600, plus full fixed charges and meter rent.
Other homes that go over the limit pay for their entire consumption at the normal slabs, plus fixed charges, meter rent and levies.

That last rule creates a cliff. A general-category home that uses 650 units in a two-month bill pays for all 650, not 50. If solar keeps such a home’s billed units under the limit, the saving can be far bigger than the units generated suggest. A home that never crosses 600 units gains little from solar on its bill.

When you do pay, PSPCL’s domestic rates from 1 April 2026 are:

Sanctioned load	Fixed charge	0-300 units a month	Above 300 units a month
Up to 2 kW	₹50 per kW	₹3.85	₹7.05
Above 2 kW up to 7 kW	₹70 per kW	₹4.25	₹7.05
Above 7 kW up to 20 kW	₹100 per kW	₹5.00	₹7.05

Under net metering you are billed on net units, the units imported minus the units exported. How PSPCL applies the 600-unit limit to a net-metered bill is something to confirm with your sub-division before you size the system.

How surplus credit is settled

Bill by bill: exported units are set off against imported units. If you exported more, the surplus is carried forward.
Once a year: the settlement period runs from 1 October to 30 September. Seasonal industries use April to March instead.
The price: credit still unadjusted at the end is paid at 75% of the feed-in tariff approved by PSERC for that year. At the start of the next period, the carried-over count resets to zero.
When you are paid: within 30 days of the end of the settlement period. A late payment carries interest at SBI’s one-year marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR).
Paid, not credited: in a memo dated 9 October 2026, PSPCL told its field offices that this amount must be paid to the consumer and not credited or adjusted against the electricity bill.

PSERC sets the feed-in tariff each year. We could not find the 2026-27 rooftop figure in a published order, so ask PSPCL for it. Figures on some installer websites could not be traced to a rooftop order. Either way, 75% of a feed-in tariff is far below the ₹7.05 a unit a home pays above 300 units a month. Size the system to your annual use, not your roof.

Size limits and metering options

Rule	What it says
Domestic size limit	Up to your sanctioned load in kW, or contract demand converted to kW at a 0.9 power factor.
Net metering cap	500 kWp.
Group net metering (from 1 July 2026)	One consumer with several connections of the same category can put a plant at one premises and share its output, from 5 kWp up to 500 kWp.
Virtual net metering (from 1 July 2026)	Domestic consumers, including flats and common services in housing complexes, can share an off-site plant in agreed ratios, from 5 kWp up to 500 kWp.
Behind the meter	A system can run behind your meter without net metering, with prior approval, but any power that leaks to the grid is not paid for.
Fees	PSERC has kept processing and meter-testing fee waivers for domestic systems up to 10 kWp until Punjab reaches 2.5 lakh PM Surya Ghar installations.

How to apply

Register on pmsuryaghar.gov.in with your PSPCL account number. Our PM Surya Ghar guide has the steps.
Check your last year of bills against the 600-unit limit and pick a size close to your annual use. Up to 3 kW gets the most subsidy per kW.
Choose a vendor registered on the portal. PSPCL also lists empanelled vendors on its rooftop solar page.
After installation, PSPCL inspects the system and fits the net meter.
Once the inspection is approved on the portal, the central subsidy is paid to your bank account.

The national helpline is 15555.

Common pitfalls

Ignoring free power. If your bills already stay under 600 units every two months, solar mostly produces surplus that is paid at a fraction of the retail rate.
Oversizing for export income. Leftover credit is paid once a year at 75% of the feed-in tariff, not at what you pay for power.
Expecting a monthly payout. Surplus is carried forward and paid within 30 days after 30 September.
Counting on a state top-up. None appears in the documents we checked. Treat any figure you see online as unconfirmed until PSPCL confirms it.
Installing outside the scheme. A system not registered on the national portal does not get the central subsidy.

Questions people ask

How much subsidy does a Punjab household get for rooftop solar?

Punjab homes get the standard PM Surya Ghar central subsidy: ₹30,000 for 1 kW, ₹60,000 for 2 kW and a maximum of ₹78,000 for 3 kW or more. We found no Punjab state top-up for household rooftop systems in the PSPCL documents we checked as on 1 November 2026.

Is rooftop solar worth it if I already get 300 free units?

It depends on your use. Under the Punjab government’s subsidy for 2026-27, homes get up to 600 units free every two months (300 a month). General-category homes that go over that pay for all their units, while SC, BC, non-SC BPL and freedom fighter homes pay only for the units above the limit. Solar helps most for homes that regularly cross 600 units a bill. Ask PSPCL how the free-unit limit is applied to your net-metered bill before you size the system.

What happens to the solar units I export?

On net metering, exported units are set off against the units you import in each bill, and any surplus is carried forward. The settlement period runs from 1 October to 30 September. Credit still unadjusted at the end is paid to you, and the count restarts at zero.

How much does PSPCL pay for leftover units?

PSERC’s rules set the payment at 75% of the feed-in tariff the Commission approves for that year, paid within 30 days of the end of the settlement period. If PSPCL pays late, it owes interest at SBI’s one-year MCLR. PSPCL told its field offices in October 2026 to pay this amount out, not adjust it in the bill.

How big a system can a Punjab home install?

For domestic consumers, up to the sanctioned load (or contract demand converted to kW at a 0.9 power factor). Net metering is capped at 500 kWp.

Can flats or several connections share one plant?

Yes, since 1 July 2026. Group net metering lets one consumer with several connections of the same category use one plant, and virtual net metering lets domestic consumers, including flats and common services in housing complexes, share an off-site plant. Both run from 5 kWp up to 500 kWp.

Sources

The subsidy rates, benchmark costs, housing society rate and scheme period are from MNRE’s PM Surya Ghar guidelines. The settlement period is from PSERC’s 2021 rooftop regulations as amended in March 2024, and the size limits are from the 2021 regulations. The 75% rule, 30-day deadline and MCLR interest are from Regulation 12.3(d) as amended in 2026, as quoted in PSPCL’s memo 2971 of 9 October 2026. The group and virtual net metering, behind-the-meter and fee waiver provisions are from PSERC’s Third Amendment of 2026, as reported when it was notified in April 2026; PSERC’s website could not be reached when we checked. Tariffs are from PSPCL Commercial Circular 09/2026 and the free-power terms from the Punjab Department of Power letter of 4 March 2026 attached to it. State figures are from the annexure to Lok Sabha unstarred question 2806, answered on 5 August 2026.

Related reporting is on the solar and policy pages. Other state guides: Uttarakhand (the same special-category central subsidy of up to ₹85,800, no state top-up since April 2025, surplus paid at ₹2 a unit), Uttar Pradesh (a ₹15,000-per-kW top-up, up to ₹30,000), Rajasthan (₹17,000 and 150 free units), Delhi (up to ₹78,000, with free plants for homes up to 400 units), Maharashtra (the SMART scheme), Gujarat (central subsidy only), Tamil Nadu (up to ₹22,000), Kerala (time-of-day net metering rules since January 2026), Karnataka (central subsidy only, with KERC’s 2026 rules opening net metering to all consumers), Andhra Pradesh (free plants for SC/ST homes, surplus paid monthly at ₹2.09 a unit), Telangana (central subsidy only for self-built systems, DISCOM-run plants planned for Gruha Jyothi homes), Haryana (a state grant of up to ₹50,000 for families earning up to ₹1.80 lakh, interest-free help for prompt payers), Madhya Pradesh (central subsidy only, with PM Surya Ghar processing and meter testing fees waived since June 2026), Odisha (a state top-up of up to ₹60,000 on top of the central ₹78,000, until 2026-27) and Himachal Pradesh (the special-category central subsidy of up to ₹85,800, leftover units settled once a year). If a number here disagrees with PSPCL, PSERC or the national portal, theirs wins. Corrections: [email protected].