Tamil Nadu rooftop solar subsidy 2026: the G.O. 102 state top-up

"Tamil Nadu mein ₹1 lakh subsidy milegi?" Customers have seen it on the state's rooftop solar portal and in the budget speech. It is real, but only at 3 kW and above, only ₹22,000 of it comes from the state, and only some homes get that part. This post reads the Government Order itself, sets out what each size gets, and shows how to quote a home that may not qualify.

The short answer

A Tamil Nadu household on PM Surya Ghar can get two subsidies:

• Central: ₹30,000 per kW for the first 2 kW and ₹18,000 for the third kW, capped at ₹78,000 (MNRE scheme guidelines, effective 13 February 2024, verified).
• State: a fixed amount per household, not per kW: ₹5,000 up to 1 kW, ₹10,000 up to 2 kW and ₹22,000 at 3 kW and above (G.O. (Ms) No.102, Energy (E1) Department, dated 19 September 2026, read on 30 September 2026).

Together, by system size, for a home that qualifies for the state part:

• 1 kW: ₹30,000 + ₹5,000 = ₹35,000
• 2 kW: ₹60,000 + ₹10,000 = ₹70,000
• 2.5 kW: ₹69,000 from the centre; the state amount is not confirmed
• 3 kW: ₹78,000 + ₹22,000 = ₹1,00,000
• 5 kW: still ₹78,000 + ₹22,000 = ₹1,00,000

The state part goes only to homes registered on the PM Surya Ghar portal from 5 August 2026, and only to the first 1 lakh of them. Ask before you count it.

What the order says

The G.O. starts from the state budget speech of 5 August 2026, which announced a rooftop solar subsidy scheme "in convergence with the 'Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana'", with "a subsidy of up to Rs.1 lakh" for domestic consumers and ₹50 crore allocated. It then takes up a proposal from Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation Limited (TNGECL) to help 1 lakh homes install rooftop systems by 31 March 2027.

Three passages decide how you quote:

• It is extra money. The state subsidy is "an additional subsidy over and above the Central Financial Assistance" (para 2).
• The amounts. A table headed "Proposed State Subsidy" lists "Up to 1 kW Rs.5,000", "Up to 2 kW Rs.10,000" and "3 kW and above Rs.22,000" (page 2). In para 6 the government accepts the proposal.
• Who gets it. Para 6(i) sanctions the subsidy "to 1 Lakh consumers (Registered from 05.08.2026 in PM Surya Ghar portal), on receipt of consumer data from Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE)". Para 2 says the subsidy can be extended to eligible homes "subject to successful installation, commissioning and verification", "until the benefit is availed by 1 lakh consumers".

Para 6 also sets who does what. TNGECL is the nodal agency. The Tamil Nadu Energy Development Agency (TEDA) is the Programme Management Agency, and the state pays the consumer "by DBT mode in co-ordination with TEDA". The order sanctions ₹50 crore and says more may be added later, "depending on the progress of the scheme" (para 9).

The gap between 2 and 3 kW

Read the table again. It covers "up to 2 kW" and "3 kW and above". Nothing sits in between. A 2.5 kW system gets ₹69,000 from the centre, but the order names no state amount for it, and nothing else we have read does either.

So don't quote one. Don't take a figure halfway between ₹10,000 and ₹22,000, and don't round a 2.5 kW system up into the 3 kW band. Our rates file stores the three bands as the order writes them and reports any size between 2 and 3 kW as not confirmed.

If a home's bill points to 2.5 kW, size it to the bill anyway. Quote the central ₹69,000 and write the state line as "not confirmed for this size".

Where the steps bite

Look at what the third kW earns. Going from 2 kW to 3 kW adds ₹18,000 from the centre and ₹12,000 from the state (₹22,000 less ₹10,000): ₹30,000 for one kW. Above 3 kW, neither part grows. A 5 kW home gets the same ₹1,00,000 as a 3 kW home.

That is not a reason to push every home to 3 kW. It is a reason to show a 2 kW customer, in writing, what the third kW would add, and to tell a 5 kW customer that every kW above 3 is paid in full.

What the customer pays at MNRE's benchmark

MNRE's benchmark cost is ₹50,000 per kW up to 2 kW and ₹45,000 per kW above that. It is the reference the central subsidy is set against, not a market price, and the guidelines do not say whether it includes GST. We add GST on top at the blended 8.9% from the 70:30 goods and services split (Notification 9/2025-Integrated Tax (Rate), effective 22 September 2025, verified).

For a home that qualifies for the state part:

• 1 kW: ₹50,000 + ₹4,450 GST = ₹54,450. Less ₹35,000 of subsidy: ₹19,450.
• 2 kW: ₹1,00,000 + ₹8,900 GST = ₹1,08,900. Less ₹70,000: ₹38,900.
• 3 kW: ₹1,45,000 + ₹12,905 GST = ₹1,57,905. Less ₹1,00,000: ₹57,905.

For a home that does not qualify, the central subsidy alone leaves ₹24,450, ₹48,900 and ₹79,905. Your price will differ from the benchmark. The subsidy won't.

When the money arrives

The order sets no timeline. It pays "on receipt of consumer data from" MNRE, so nothing moves until the central side has the installation on record.

The state's rooftop solar portal sets out the order of events. The central PM Surya Ghar process runs first. Once the central subsidy is credited, the state portal "takes over automatically", and "no second application is needed for the Tamil Nadu top-up". TEDA then checks eligibility, commissioning and bank details, and the portal says the top-up is credited by DBT "within 7–15 days". Its footnote says the state subsidy is released "only after installation, net-metering, commissioning and central CFA disbursal".

Two cautions. The portal still lists the Government Order as "placeholder — pending issue", although the order is dated 19 September 2026 and the page shows a last update on 24 September. And the 7 to 15 days is the portal's line, not the order's. Tell the customer to expect two credits, the central one first, and don't promise a date for the second.

The bill it saves

We don't have a verified Tamil Nadu domestic tariff yet, so there is no bill-saving example in this post. Our rates file lists TNPDCL as the state's DISCOM. Our subsidy calculator uses a general estimate for a DISCOM without a verified tariff and says so on screen. Don't quote that as the customer's tariff.

What goes wrong on Tamil Nadu quotes

• ₹1 lakh heard as the state's money. The portal shows it as ₹78,000 central plus ₹22,000 state, at 3 kW and above. At 2 kW the total is ₹70,000.
• A number for 2.5 kW. The order has none. Any figure you write there is yours, not the state's.
• An old registration. The order covers consumers registered on the PM Surya Ghar portal from 5 August 2026. Check the date on the customer's application before you count the top-up.
• The count. Only the first 1 lakh consumers get it. The order does not say where the running count is published, so ask TEDA when in doubt.
• The vendor list. The portal says systems must use DCR-compliant, ALMM-listed modules "installed by TEDA-empanelled vendors". The order itself does not mention empanelment. Check that your company is on the portal's vendor list before you promise the state part.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Tamil Nadu subsidy ₹1 lakh?

No. The state part is ₹5,000, ₹10,000 or ₹22,000 per household. With the central ₹78,000, a system of 3 kW or more reaches ₹1,00,000 in all.

Is the state amount per kW?

No. It is one amount per household for each band. A 3 kW system gets ₹22,000, not ₹22,000 per kW.

My customer registered on PM Surya Ghar in 2025. Do they get it?

The order covers consumers registered from 5 August 2026. A home registered earlier is outside that text. Ask TEDA before you promise anything.

Is there a size limit?

The order states none. The portal says the scheme covers residential rooftop systems up to 10 kW. Confirm with TEDA before you quote the state part above 10 kW.

Put your customer's units into the subsidy calculator, choose Tamil Nadu, and tick the eligibility box only after you have checked the registration date. It shows a size between 2 and 3 kW as not confirmed. The solar cost calculator turns a price into a net figure. Other states are in our state-by-state subsidy guide.