Srinagar, Oct 21: Jammu and Kashmir has 37,367 rooftop solar systems left to install in under six months, and at its current speed it will fall nearly 18,000 short.
The warning came in a presentation by the Power Development Department at a review of the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana chaired by the Chief Secretary in the first week of this month.
By October 5, J&K had installed 46,133 systems, or 55.24 percent of its 83,500-household target, ahead of the national figure of 50.80 percent.
But the deadline is March 31, 2027, and J&K needs 6227 installations a month while managing 3261.
At that rate, the department’s own projection shows about 65,699 installations by the deadline, roughly 17,800 short.
The two utilities are performing unevenly. The Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited (KPDCL) has completed 28,324 of its 44,000 target, or 64.38 percent.
The Jammu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (JPDCL) has finished 17,809 of 39,500, or 45.09 percent, and its monthly rate of 1412 is far below the 3615 it needs.
District figures show a wide gap.
Kupwara has crossed its target, with 4564 installations against 4500, and Shopian stands at 99.41 percent.
Srinagar, with the largest target of 15,000, is at 50.35 percent.
In the Jammu division, Poonch is at 28.71 percent, and Kishtwar, Ramban, Rajouri and Reasi are all below 40 percent.
The department named bank finance as the main bottleneck.
About 75 percent of installations in KPDCL’s area depend on loans, yet of 61,566 loan applications filed across J&K, 17,416 have been rejected, and 5,367 are pending.
In KPDCL’s jurisdiction alone, 14,232 of 43,398 applications were turned down.
J&K Bank data shows rejection was especially high in Bandipora, where 1033 of 1989 applications failed, about 52 percent.
Loans also take around 25 days from application to disbursal, a long wait when the whole process from registration to commissioning is meant to take about a month.
The department proposed exploring a waiver of the co-borrower requirement for senior citizens who are pensioners.
Money and manpower add to the strain.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has not released awareness and outreach funds for 2024-25 and 2025-26, which the department said is hurting campaigns and vendor mobilisation.
Technical manpower remains short despite training drives, and supplies of Tier-1 solar modules have been intermittent.
Consumers are also leaning towards hybrid systems with storage, which would need an extra top-up subsidy from the UT.
Vendor conduct drew particular concern.
Of 983 registered vendors, only around 300 are active in J&K.
KPDCL recently blacklisted one vendor, and show-cause notices have gone to 41 inactive vendors in JPDCL and 10 in KPDCL.
The department said delays by some vendors are damaging public trust in the scheme.
Officials said 1614 awareness campaigns have been held so far, along with Seva Setu camps running until October 17.
With under six months left, the scheme’s fate in J&K may rest less on public interest than on whether banks, vendors and the government can clear the path.
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