Power Minister launches State Rooftop Solar Attractiveness Index – SARAL

At a recent Review Planning and Monitoring (RPM) Meeting with States and State Power Utilities, the Union Minister Mr. R.K. Singh launched the State Rooftop Solar Attractiveness Index–SARAL. According to the index, Karnataka has topped the list followed by Telangana, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh raking 2nd, 3rd & 4th respectively. A print release of the same was made on 21st August 2019.
The index is intended to incentivize rooftop solar by creating healthy competition among the States. The Union Minister encouraged all States to adopt the best practices being followed by the top-ranking States. SARAL index is jointly designed by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation (SSEF), Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) and Ernst & Young (EY).
The key aspects of SARAL are:

• Robustness of the policy framework
• Implementation environment
• Investment climate
• Consumer experience
• Business ecosystem

The above aspects will help all the states to improve its solar rooftop ecosystem. This will help states to channelize investments that can eventually help the sector grow.  In addition, this exercise will likely create a more productive environment for solar rooftop installations, encourage investment and lead to the accelerated growth of the sector.
The RPM Meeting discussed various schemes and issues pertaining to the sector such as Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY), Integrated Power Distribution Scheme (IPDS), UDAY, 24/7 power supply, etc.
Currently, the country has achieved 2141.03 MW of Rooftop solar as in July 2019 MNRE.