MNRE Issues SOP to Address Vendor Violations Under PM Surya Ghar Scheme

Context of the New SOP

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has released a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to regulate vendor conduct under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSG: MBY). Codified in an Office Memorandum dated June 22, 2026, the SOP establishes a strict disciplinary framework to protect residential consumers and ensure technical integrity across the scheme’s massive implementation footprint.

With a total financial outlay of Rs 75,021 crore and an ambitious target of 1 crore households by FY 2026-27, the scale of the program has necessitated aggressive regulatory oversight. Industry data highlights the urgency of this intervention: approximately 18% of installations currently fail their initial DISCOM inspection, and nearly 25% of vendors active at the scheme’s 2024 launch have become unreachable by 2026. This SOP serves as a corrective measure against such legacy “vanishing vendors” and documented technical negligence, including structural failures where systems designed for 150 km/h wind resistance collapsed at just 95 km/h.

Structured Complaint Categorization

To streamline enforcement, the MNRE has partitioned grievances into three distinct categories managed through automated and manual oversight channels:

• Case-A: Grievances filed by consumers via the official Grievance Management System (GMS) portal or through direct correspondence with the vendor vertical subunit.
• Case-B: Violations identified during audits by third-party inspection agencies. These cases are managed by the National Programme Implementation Agency (NPIA), with REC Limited serving as the primary implementing agency providing oversight.
• Case-C: High-priority complaints received via VIP references, public representatives, or direct administrative interventions initiated by the MNRE.

Graded Escalation & Compliance Timelines

The disciplinary process follows a rigid, time-bound sequence. Vendors must recognize that these triggers are increasingly automated to ensure non-responsive installers are filtered out of the national ecosystem rapidly.

Consequences of Non-Compliance

Vendors failing to provide satisfactory explanations or those remaining non-responsive within the 30-day escalation window face severe administrative and reputational penalties:

• Portal Deactivation: Errant vendors will face temporary deactivation from the PM Surya Ghar national portal for a period of one month.
• Transparency Listing: To protect future consumers, the names of deactivated vendors will be publicly displayed on the PM Surya Ghar national portal.
• Appeal and Reinstatement: Vendors have a 30-day window to submit supporting evidence for an appeal. Reinstatement occurs within one month only if the registering agency deems the corrective actions satisfactory. Continued non-compliance or unsatisfactory responses may result in permanent suspension following a case-by-case assessment.

Identified Technical & Service Violations

The SOP explicitly links technical failure to financial consequences. Vendors are warned that installations failing to meet these standards risk the forfeiture or clawback of the ₹78,000 CFA subsidy, leaving the consumer with a significant financial liability.

Technical Standards

• Use of non-ALMM (Approved List of Models and Manufacturers) modules or non-BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) inverters.
• Prohibited submission of repeated serial numbers for solar equipment (effective May 26, 2026).
• Unsafe wiring, inadequate earthing, or lack of mandatory surge protection.
• Structural safety gaps, including failure to meet mandatory wind-load resistance.
• Mismatches between physical equipment and data uploaded to the national portal.

Service & Procedural Obligations

• Delays in project execution after receipt of advance or full payment.
• Failure to honor the mandatory 5-year Comprehensive Maintenance Contract (CMC).
• Missing warranties, technical certifications, or signed consumer agreements.
• Obstruction of third-party inspection agencies or REC Limited representatives during site verifications.

Vendor Verification & Compliance Standards

To maintain an “Active” status on the portal and ensure subsidy eligibility, vendors must adhere to the following mandatory benchmarks:

• ALMM & BIS Adherence: Modules must be sourced from List-I of the ALMM, and inverters must strictly comply with IS 16221 and IS 16169.
• DCR & NISE Integration: All installations must meet Domestic Content Requirements (DCR), verified via the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) portal.
• Performance Ratio (PR): Vendors must guarantee a Performance Ratio of at least 75% at the time of commissioning and must maintain this 75% PR for the entire 5-year warranty period.
• Documentation: Vendors must provide the model draft agreement and ensure the 5-year comprehensive system warranty covers all overhauling and regular health checks.
• Data Integrity: Submission of fraudulent data, such as repeated serial numbers, will trigger immediate deactivation under Case-B protocols.