Why West Bengal lags in India’s rooftop solar revolution
Times of India | 23 June 2026
India’s rooftop solar sector is booming, but West Bengal is being left in the dark. Despite a nationwide surge in clean energy, West Bengal remains one of the country's slowest adopters, holding just 67 megawatts (MW) of installed rooftop solar capacity as of March 2026.
To put that in perspective, West Bengal’s total capacity is less than one percent of India-leader Gujarat's 6,882 MW.
The findings, analyzed by Bengaluru-based research firm Climate Compatible Futures (CCF) using data from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), reveal a stark west-to-east divide. A mere handful of western and southern states currently dominate the sector, with the top 10 states accounting for nearly 86% of the country's total capacity.
Experts emphasize that the issue isn't a lack of sunlight. Eastern India receives ample solar radiation. Instead, the bottleneck is entirely systemic.
"Solar potential is not the constraint," says Dr. Manish Ram, CEO of Climate Compatible Futures. "Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Kerala built up installer networks, financing channels, and consumer awareness years ago. Their distribution companies (DISCOMs) process net-metering applications quickly and view rooftop solar as an asset."
In contrast, eastern DISCOMs are financially stressed, overly cautious, and slow to approve applications. Coupled with a thin local vendor base and weak access to consumer credit, households in West Bengal are largely missing out on major central incentives like the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, which offers families up to ?78,000 in subsidies.
A missed economic opportunity
This sluggish adoption marks a severe economic loss for the region. Transitioning to solar could lower electricity bills for citizens and spark a boom for local green-tech businesses.
"The economically weaker states in the east need to tap into the financial benefits of cheaper renewable energy to boost their economies," notes Ashish Fernandes, Director of Climate Risk Horizon. "However, the utilities have to cooperate, and that directive has to come from the state government."
The climate stakes
The regional gap threatens India's broader climate timeline. In March 2026, the Union Cabinet approved India’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), targeting a 47% cut in emissions intensity and a goal of 60% non-fossil power capacity by 2035.
Because power procurement happens at the state level, India cannot hit these targets if only a few states do the heavy lifting. Rooftop solar is the fastest way to scale clean energy without the complications of acquiring new land or laying massive transmission lines.
"India’s 2035 targets assume every state pulls its weight, and that will not happen on subsidies alone," Dr. Ram warns. "The states falling behind need functioning distribution utilities, local vendors, and consumers who trust that the savings will actually show up on their bills. That is a question of execution, not ambition."