The Ministry of Power, in a recent amendment to the Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules, 2020, has directed state commissions to ensure the tariff for solar hours (the duration of eight hours in a day) must be at least 20% lower than the normal tariff for all consumer categories (except agricultural consumers). The Ministry amended the rules to introduce provisions for Time-of-Day (ToD) tariffs and regulations around smart and prepaid meter usage for consumers. The amended rules came into effect on June 14, 2023. The Ministry has introduced the concept of ToD tariffs to promote efficient energy usage.