PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana has crossed 50 lakh rooftop solar installations, marking a significant milestone in India's residential solar push. Launched in February 2024, the scheme targets 1 crore households with free electricity up to 300 units monthly. It provides central financial assistance as subsidy and facilitates collateral-free loans. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy implements it with ₹75,021 crore outlay, making it one of India's largest clean energy welfare programmes.

PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana addresses two policy problems simultaneously: energy poverty and renewable energy transition. Before this scheme, rooftop solar adoption among households was negligible because upfront capital costs were prohibitive for lower-middle-income families.

The scheme's delivery mechanism works on three levers. First, a central subsidy: ₹30,000 per kW for systems up to 2 kW, and ₹18,000 per kW for the 2–3 kW range, capped at 3 kW for subsidy. Second, collateral-free bank loans at concessional rates, removing the credit barrier. Third, a national online portal (pmsuryaghar.gov.in) for application, vendor selection, and subsidy disbursement — making it a Direct Benefit Transfer-linked programme.

For RBI aspirants, the collateral-free loan component connects to priority sector lending (PSL) norms and renewable energy financing targets. For NABARD aspirants, rural household electrification and green credit linkages are the angle. For UPSC aspirants, this is a case study in cooperative federalism — state discoms, central subsidy, and local bodies all coordinate delivery.

The 50 lakh milestone against the 1 crore target means the scheme is 50% complete. The examiner will test the scheme's parameters, the subsidy structure, the nodal ministry, and the financial outlay — all exact numbers.