Maharashtra’s solar energy plans are facing a policy clash. The central government’s PM Surya Ghar Yojana aims to expand rooftop solar by offering households up to 300 units of free electricity each month, while the state government is considering a night-time tariff hike to manage its power distribution costs.

Many consumers who turned to solar power to cut their electricity bills now worry that new rules will make clean energy less affordable.

“We currently only pay Rs 130 a month, but we have no idea how much they may charge us in the near future,” says Chandrakant Shelke, a 49-year-old farmer from Shelkewadi. “With new laws, who can predict how the government will tax us and modify the tariff?”

Shelkewadi is a 100% solar-powered village in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district. It is a mo

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