Lok Sabha Question No. 75 (STARRED), answered on 2026-02-04
Subject: City Accelerator Programme
Ministry: NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
Asked by: Shri Bidyut Baran Mahato, Shri Lumbaram Choudhary

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 75

ANSWERED ON 04.02.2026

## CITY ACCELERATOR PROGRAMME

## *75. SHRI BIDYUT BARAN MAHATO SHRI LUMBARAM CHOUDHARY

Will the Minister of NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of objectives, implementation framework and major achievements of the City Accelerator Programme launched to promote rooftop solar energy adoption in urban areas; (b) the criteria for the selection of first thirty cities from ten States and the roles of urban local bodies, Power Distribution Companies (DISCOMs) and State nodal agencies defined under this programme;
- (c) the extent to which technical assistance, capacity building and policy support including deployment of dedicated teams is proposed to be provided to the participating cities;
- (d) whether the North-Eastern States have also been given priority under the said programme and if so, the details thereof;
- (e) whether any cities from Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have also been included among the first thirty cities selected; and
- (f) if so, the details of the progress made so far in Madhya Pradesh under the said programme, district-wise?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS, & FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## (SHRI PRALHAD JOSHI)

(a) to (f) A statement is laid on the table of the House.

*****

## STATEMENT

## Statement referred to in reply of parts (a) to (f) of Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 75 to be answered on 04.02.2026 regarding City Accelerator Programme

(a) to (c) The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) in collaboration with the Shakti Sustainable  Energy  Foundation  has  launched  the  City  Accelerator  Program  (CAP)  in  June 2025, with the main objective to fast-track rooftop solar (RTS) deployment under PM -Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSG: MBY) across 100 cities nationwide in two phases. In the initial phase 30 cities across 10 States have been selected based on criteria including:

- Urban population size and applications received on the PMSG Portal;
- Rooftop solar potential and existing adoption levels;
- Readiness and capacity of DISCOMs and State Nodal Agencies (SNAs); and
- Willingness of States and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) to actively participate and support implementation.

The implementation framework follows a three-tier coordinated structure, wherein the MNRE, provides  overall  programme  design,  coordination  and  monitoring;  State  Governments  and SNAs facilitate adoption through policy support and coordination with DISCOMs; and ULBs drive city-level awareness, facilitation and capacity-building activities on the ground.

The CAP is designed to address city-specific barriers to rooftop solar adoption through targeted interventions,  including  establishment  of  dedicated  City  Accelerator  Cells,  strengthened stakeholder coordination with DISCOMs, SNAs, vendors and ULBs, regular capacity-building programmes  and  awareness  drives,  and  improved  facilitation  and  grievance  redressal mechanisms.

(d): Three cities of Assam namely Guwahati, Barpeta and Dibrugarh have been covered in the initial first 30 cities of the CAP.

(e): For the state of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal, Jabalapur, Satna and Indore have been covered, while no city of the state of Chhattisgarh has been covered in the initial first 30 cities of the CAP.

(f)  Under  the  CAP  in  the  state  of  Madhya  Pradesh,  the  City  Accelerator  Cells  conducted structured engagements with Madhya Pradesh Urja Vikas Nigam Limited, DISCOMs of the State, ULBs, Banks, RTS vendors, and other stakeholders to support implementation of PMSG:

MBY.  These  activities  focus  on  sensitisation  on  scheme  guidelines,  roles,  and  processes, improving  inter-agency  coordination,  and  identifying  implementation  bottlenecks  through meetings and field visits.