India’s clean energy sector has generated nearly 6.6 lakh new jobs over the past four years, driven largely by the rapid expansion of rooftop solar installations. However, despite strong workforce growth, women continue to be underrepresented, making up only 11% of the sector’s total workforce, according to a report released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), with support from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
Clean Energy Workforce Grows By 6.5 Lakh
The report estimates that 657,845 workers were added across India’s clean energy sectors between FY23 and FY26, driven by rapid renewable energy deployment. Rooftop solar accounted for the largest share of new jobs at 62%, followed by PM KUSUM related projects at 16.3% and biomass power at 12.6%. Ground-mounted solar contributed 6% of workforce additions, while wind and hydropower accounted for smaller shares.
The findings are based on surveys and analysis across solar, wind, bioenergy and hydropower sectors. The study notes that workforce growth has accompanied India’s rapid renewable energy expansion and its achievement of sourcing 50% of installed power capacity from non-fossil fuel sources ahead of schedule.
Rooftop Solar Creates More Jobs Than Utility-Scale Projects
Among renewable energy technologies, decentralised systems were found to be significantly more labour-intensive than large-scale projects.
The report estimates that rooftop solar generates 44.68 full-time equivalent (FTE) green job years per MW, around 44 times higher than ground-mounted solar, which creates 1 FTE job-year per MW. Smaller rooftop systems below 10 kW generate even higher employment intensity at nearly 55 FTE job-years per MW.
Biomass-to-power projects recorded the highest employment intensity among electricity-generating technologies at 164.82 FTE job-years per MW, followed by small hydropower at 152.43 FTE job-years per MW.
More Than 44 Lakh Jobs Possible By 2030 Targets
Looking ahead, the study estimates that achieving India’s 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity target along with the objectives of the National Green Hydrogen Mission could generate more than 44.5 lakh FTE jobs.
Of these, around 12.8 lakh jobs are expected to be long-term roles in operations, maintenance and manufacturing. Rooftop solar alone is projected to contribute 43.3% of the total jobs generated, making it the largest employment driver among clean energy technologies.
Women Account For Just 11% Of Workforce
Despite rapid sector growth, women’s participation remains limited.
The report found that women represent only 11% of the workforce across solar and wind deployment and manufacturing sectors. Around 62% of women employed in the industry work in non-technical functions such as human resources, administration and accounting rather than engineering or field roles.
Rooftop solar recorded the highest female participation at 15%, while wind manufacturing reported the lowest at 6%. The study also found that 44% of surveyed companies had at least one woman on their board of directors.
Demand Rising For Skilled Workforce
The report also highlights the increasing demand for skilled talent as renewable energy technologies become more sophisticated and deployment scales up. Approximately 60% of jobs in clean energy deployment require skilled or semi-skilled workers, while manufacturing segments show an even higher need for specialized expertise, with 80–90% of roles falling within these categories. The findings underscore the importance of workforce development and targeted skill-building initiatives to support India’s growing clean energy ambitions.
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