Panchkula, July 23 (UNI) Rajasthan was the top contributor to new solar capacity in FY 2025-26. Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, and Jammu & Kashmir also reported new installations.
During this period, the Centre expanded efforts to promote agri-voltaics through research, pilot projects, and national standards development, as reported to Parliament. India added 44,614.25 MW of solar capacity in FY 2025-26. Rajasthan led with 12,726.15 MW, followed by Gujarat with 10,806.26 MW and Andhra Pradesh with 2,124.81 MW.
Among northern states, Haryana added 543.41 MW of solar capacity: 0.96 MW from ground-mounted projects, 359.80 MW from rooftop installations, and 182.65 MW from hybrid systems. Punjab added 163.51 MW, Himachal Pradesh 154.03 MW, Delhi 107.80 MW, and Jammu & Kashmir 4.99 MW during the year.
The Government informed the Parliament that the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), in partnership with the ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), has established a Centre of Excellence on Agrivoltaics for research, demonstration, and capacity-building.
The Centre has commissioned a 100-kW agrivoltaic system at ICAR-IARI, and 37 pilot projects have been launched by research institutions, agricultural universities, and private stakeholders nationwide. The government stated that studies by institutions such as The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) estimate India's theoretical agrivoltaic potential at 1,192 GW to 2,129 GW.
Actual deployment will depend on land suitability, cropping patterns, climate, and other site-specific factors. To support sector growth, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has formed a committee to develop standards for agrivoltaic farming systems. The Ministry has also established an expert committee to prepare a Handbook on Agri-Voltaics in India.
The government further informed Parliament that Component A of the PM-KUSUM scheme allows farmers to set up stilt-mounted, grid-connected agrivoltaic solar power plants on their agricultural land. The Ministry also stated that it has not received any proposals from Andhra Pradesh for installing an agrivoltaic plant under Component A of the PM-KUSUM scheme.
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