Sikkim’s rooftop solar push: the state that banned plastic bags now targets the grid

Sikkim, which banned plastic bags in 1998 and went fully organic in 2016, has a new first in its sights: a million rooftop panels by 2030.

The state’s grid is already hydro-heavy, but rooftop solar cuts transmission losses in a mountainous terrain where power lines are costly to maintain.

The first 500 installations — on schools, hospitals and homes — are generating more than modelled, and the waitlist is growing.