| Work Detail |
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has taken steps to streamline the verification process of solar modules used under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana by integrating the Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) portal with the scheme’s National Portal. The initiative aims to address issues of repeated serial numbers and improve traceability of solar modules. The PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana aims to install one crore rooftop solar systems in the residential sector and is managed through the National Portal. One of the key requirements of this scheme is that solar modules used must follow the Domestic Content Requirement, meaning they must be made in India using Indian-manufactured solar cells. To ensure this requirement is met, a DCR verification portal has been made functional by the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE). The MNRE has instructed all stakeholders to upload data related to installations from January 1, 2024, on this portal. From December 1, 2024, onwards, if a solar PV module’s DCR credentials cannot be verified on this portal, it will not be accepted under major government schemes including the CPSU Scheme Phase-II, PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, and PM-KUSUM. The DCR portal has now been linked with the National Portal, allowing verification of module serial numbers at the time of installation. To reduce manual errors, vendors will be required to input a 16-digit DCR certificate number into the National Portal. Once entered, the portal will automatically fetch the associated module serial numbers and the capacity allocated to the consumer from the DCR portal. All vendors registered on the National Portal must generate a DCR certificate specific to each consumer, known as the B2C certificate. Only the B2C certificate number will be valid for verifying the module serial numbers on the National Portal. This step is expected to eliminate the need for vendors to submit manual undertakings due to duplicate serial numbers, a common issue faced earlier due to errors in entering serial numbers. Even with this new system, if any module serial number appears more than once, the National Portal will alert the vendor during submission. Inverter serial numbers will still be entered manually and also flagged in case of duplication. If a serial number is flagged, vendors are required to submit a legal undertaking in the specified format. For applications already submitted with repeated module serial numbers, these will be returned to vendors. Vendors can use the DCR certificate number to fetch accurate module serial numbers and manually add the inverter serial number before resubmitting, along with the required undertaking if the repeated flag remains. Applications that have already been inspected by DISCOMs and found to have repeated serial numbers will also be returned with a “Repeated serial no.” and “Reverification Flag” so that DISCOMs can identify them for further review. These flagged applications must be reverified by DISCOMs with a focus on verifying the net metering date. Both the flagged applications and the original ones that caused the duplication will be considered for 1% third-party inspections to maintain data accuracy. |
