Budget 2024: Households to get up to 300 units of free electricity under rooftop solar scheme | 5 points
The scheme was announced by PM Modi on January 22, and was his first decision post the Ram Temple ceremony.
Every month, free electricity of up to 300 units will be provided under the Centre’s proposed rooftop solarisation scheme, which was announced by prime minister Narendra Modi last month, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman declared in her budget speech on Thursday.
The Rooftop Solarisation and Free Electricity scheme was PM Modi’s first decision after the Ram Temple ceremony. The initiative was unveiled on January 22, a day after the ceremony.
Here is all you need to know about the scheme:
(1.) The plan comes under the Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana, and will benefit around 10 million (one crore) households by allowing them to sell their surplus electricity (to DISCOMS).
(2.) It is estimated that the project will help these households save between ₹15,000 and ₹18,000 annually, Sitharaman noted in her speech.
(3.) The state-run Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) Limited is the designated nodal agency for the project.
(4.) Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana is aimed at providing electricity to low and middle-income families through rooftop solar installations.
(5.) Under rooftop installation, solar photovoltaic (PV) panels are fixed atop a building, home, or a residential property.
Budget 2024
An interim budget, it made Sitharaman only the second finance minister to deliver six consecutive budgets. Budget 2024 was ‘interim’ as the government faces a general election this year, in April-May. A full one will be presented in July by the incoming government, whether a new administration or a re-elected one.