How to File RTI for PM Surya Ghar Solar Rooftop Subsidy (MNRE)

PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, launched in February 2024, is one of India's most ambitious clean energy programmes — targeting one crore households with rooftop solar installations and free electricity of up to 300 units per month. The scheme is administered by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), with implementation channelled through DISCOMs (electricity distribution companies) at the state level and a central digital portal managed via NTPC at solarrooftop.gov.in.

Despite the scheme's scale and ambitions, many applicants — individual households as well as housing societies — face significant obstacles: subsidy amounts not credited after commissioning, applications stuck or rejected on the portal without clear explanation, DISCOMs slow to approve net metering, and empanelled vendors delivering substandard installations. RTI is a powerful tool to obtain official, written answers about how the scheme is being administered, why your application is delayed, and what the government's records actually show.

What MNRE Controls and What DISCOMs Control

Understanding the division of responsibility is essential before filing RTI, because the right authority depends on the type of information you need.

MNRE (Central Government — file via rtionline.gov.in) is responsible for:

• National scheme guidelines, eligibility criteria, and subsidy slabs
• Benchmark cost per watt used to calculate subsidy amounts
• Empanelment of vendors/installers on solarrooftop.gov.in
• DISCOM tie-up agreements and the obligations DISCOMs must fulfil
• Release of subsidy funds to states and implementing agencies
• Aggregate data: total installations sanctioned, total subsidy disbursed, state-wise performance

DISCOMs (State-level public authorities — file via state RTI portal) are responsible for:

• Receiving and processing individual consumer applications
• Issuing technical feasibility approval
• Overseeing installation and conducting site inspections
• Approving net metering connections
• Commissioning completed installations on the portal
• Forwarding subsidy claims to MNRE/implementing agency
• Crediting subsidy to beneficiary bank accounts (in most states)

If your problem is with your individual application — a stalled net metering approval, a delayed inspection, or a DISCOM refusing to commission your installation — the DISCOM RTI is the correct first step. For scheme-wide policy questions, aggregate data, vendor empanelment, and subsidy formula, MNRE is the correct authority.

Six Categories of Information You Can Seek Through RTI

1. State-Wise Subsidy Disbursement Figures

MNRE maintains data on how many installations have been completed and how much subsidy has been disbursed, state by state. This data is useful for benchmarking your state's performance, understanding whether funds have been released from MNRE to your state, and determining whether the delay in your subsidy credit is a state-level bottleneck or a central one. You can ask for: total number of applications received and approved nationally and by state, total subsidy released (in Rs. crore) by state, and number of beneficiaries whose subsidy has been credited to their bank accounts.

2. DISCOM Tie-Up Agreement Terms

MNRE executes formal tie-up agreements with DISCOMs to bring them onto the PM Surya Ghar platform. These agreements specify the DISCOMs' obligations — including the timeline for technical feasibility approval, net metering installation, site inspection after commissioning, and reporting obligations. If your DISCOM is consistently slow or obstructive, obtaining the tie-up agreement through RTI lets you identify exactly which obligation has been breached and provides a factual basis for a complaint to MNRE or the state electricity regulatory commission.

3. Empanelled Vendor Selection Criteria and Removal Records

The National Portal for Rooftop Solar lists empanelled vendors whom consumers are encouraged to use. However, the criteria for empanelment — minimum technical qualifications, financial capacity requirements, track record standards, and the conditions under which a vendor is removed — are not always publicly visible on the portal. If you were misled by an empanelled vendor, used substandard equipment, or suffered a fraudulent installation, RTI can produce certified details of the vendor's empanelment status, the criteria they were required to meet, and any complaints or removal actions recorded against them.

4. Subsidy Calculation Formula and Benchmark Cost

The subsidy under PM Surya Ghar is calculated on the basis of a benchmark cost per watt set by MNRE, with fixed subsidy slabs for systems up to 2 kW, between 2 kW and 3 kW, and above 3 kW. This benchmark cost is periodically revised. RTI can confirm the exact formula applied at the time your installation was sanctioned, the benchmark cost figure in force at that date, and the authority that approved any revision — ensuring that your subsidy was calculated correctly and that you were not underpaid.

5. Portal Application Rejection Categories

Applications on solarrooftop.gov.in can be rejected or returned for a range of reasons — consumer number mismatches, DISCOM integration issues, document format errors, duplicate applications, or technical ineligibility. MNRE maintains a defined list of rejection reason codes in the portal system. Obtaining this list through RTI — and asking which code was applied to your specific application — gives you an actionable explanation that the portal's user interface often fails to display clearly.

6. Installation Quality Inspection Criteria

Before a completed rooftop solar installation is commissioned and the subsidy claim processed, a DISCOM engineer or empanelled inspector is required to verify that the installation meets quality and safety standards. MNRE sets or approves the standard checklist for this inspection. If your installation was commissioned without inspection, or if an inspection report was filed that you believe is inaccurate, obtaining the standard inspection checklist through RTI lets you assess whether the inspection actually followed the prescribed process.

How to File RTI with MNRE

1. Visit rtionline.gov.in and click Submit Request
2. In the ministry/department selection field, choose Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
3. Draft your questions clearly — include any reference numbers (portal application ID, DISCOM consumer number, state/district) so the CPIO can locate your records
4. Pay the ₹10 application fee online. BPL cardholders are exempt under the RTI (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005
5. Submit and note your registration number for tracking

Appeals

First Appeal (Section 19(1)): If MNRE does not respond within 30 days, or the response is incomplete or unsatisfactory, file a First Appeal with the First Appellate Authority (FAA) of MNRE within 30 days of the date of decision or expiry of the 30-day response period, whichever is applicable. The FAA details are available on MNRE's website and on rtionline.gov.in.

Second Appeal (Section 19(3)): Since MNRE is a Central Government public authority, the second appeal lies with the Central Information Commission (CIC). File within 90 days of the FAA's decision (or the expiry of the time allowed for the FAA's decision). The CIC can direct disclosure and impose a penalty of ₹250 per day (up to ₹25,000) on an errant CPIO under Section 20 of the RTI Act.

Note on DISCOM RTIs: If you file RTI with a DISCOM (which is a state undertaking), the second appeal does not go to the CIC — it goes to the relevant State Information Commission (SIC) of your state.