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On the surface, India's solar boom looks like an overwhelming success story.

The country overtook Japan to become the third-largest solar power generator last year, and a new government scheme to encourage rooftop solar panels is expected to create 30 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity in homes.

But our climate correspondent in New Delhi, Bhasker Tripathi, reports this week that homeowners might need more convincing.

Launched before the country headed to the polls, the new programme provides 75 billion rupees ($9 billion) in subsidies to install grid-connected rooftop solar systems on around 10 million homes.

The idea is that consumers can reduce their electricity bills when the sun shines, and can even sell extra units to the grid to earn some money. With a one-stop online portal, homeowners can get paid directly.

"I want three things. Every household's power bill should be zero; we should sell surplus electricity and earn money; and I want to make India self-reliant in the energy sector as we transition to the era of electric vehicles," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in late April.

But Bhasker heard something different from Lakshmi Narayan, an entrepreneurial 60-year-old engineer in India's Bhopal city who put panels on his roof back in 2020.

Narayan said the challenge is getting the electricity distribution companies, or DISCOMs, on board.

Although he saved 250,000 rupees ($2,996) in electricity bills over three years thanks to his 6 kilowatt (KW) solar system, selling excess electricity to the grid proved to be problematic.

"The electricity distribution company charges me 8 rupees for each unit that I consume from the grid, but for the surplus solar electricity that I sell back to the grid, they pay me 1.5 rupees per unit," Narayan said. "How is that fair?"

With India's population surging, a race is underway for India to transition to cleaner energy sources like solar power while meeting rising demands for electricity.

Back in 2015, India promised to install 40 GW of rooftop solar capacity by 2022. By the end of 2023, it had only installed 11 GW, including only 3 GW in homes.

According to energy experts who spoke to Bhasker, India's solar drive is hampered by fears of DISCOMs losing income, a shortage of skilled workers, and a proliferation of substandard products.

Another issue is that grid-connected solar power cannot deliver energy when there are outages unless homes have a separate battery - something the government subsidy does not cover.

The government says its new solar programme will create around 1.7 million direct jobs across various sectors. But workers in these new green jobs require training.

Narayan is hopeful that solving the distribution issues could encourage more people to make the switch to solar.

"If the government can enable people to truly earn some money… it will be a hit among customers," he said. "Who would not want it?"

If not, there could be a ceiling on India's rooftop ambitions.

See you next week,

Jack