Karnataka farmer leases land for solar power hub benefiting thousands of pumps

The PM-KUSUM C scheme is converting solar power into a direct lifeline for thousands of farming water pumps across Karnataka's Bengaluru Rural and Chickballapur districts, eliminating the voltage dips and outages that plague grid-connected agriculture.

From mango farm to power hub

Narayan Swamy, who once grew mangoes on his 40-acre plot in Nallimaradahalli, Chickballapur, now leases the land to a private firm that has covered it with solar panels under the scheme. The arrangement pays him ₹60,000 per acre annually for 25 years, while the installation feeds electricity to agricultural pumps instead of drawing supply from Bescom. "When the yield started reducing, I felt leasing it was the next best step instead of selling it to a real estate firm," he told The Hindu. The power from the 13-MW Nallimaradahalli sub-station now reaches pumps serving 3,000 farmers across 27 villages.

How the scheme relieves the grid

PM-KUSUM C is a central government initiative that converts existing grid-connected agricultural pumps to solar, delivering daytime electricity without interruption. According to N. Shivashankar, Bescom's managing director, pulling power from distant hydro or thermal plants overloads transmission lines and causes frequent cuts. The solar route allows farmers to run borewells "without power interruption or voltage issues," he said.

Bescom has signed power purchase agreements for projects totalling 1,159.1 MW, covering 2,79,043 agricultural pumps, out of a sanctioned 3.22 lakh units. Each megawatt requires three-and-a-half acres of land; the Ministry sets a floor lease price of ₹25,000 per acre, though private landowners negotiate higher rates based on location and proximity to sub-stations.

Lakes, deemed forest land on the roster

Two other installations illustrate the land strategies: the Kundana project generates 3 MW on the bed of Hooganawadi lake, powering 797 pumps in 37 villages, while Devanahalli produces 13 MW for 2,811 pumps across 68 villages. The private developer, Mega Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd., pays lease fees to the Minor Irrigation Department and mounts panels high enough to survive seasonal flooding.

Bescom is also eyeing portions of Chickballapur's 20,000 hectares of deemed forest land, expecting the district administration to release 11,000 to 12,000 hectares after a survey concludes in three months. Around 10,000 acres of that consists of lake or tank beds; the balance will be allocated to revenue-generating state projects, including PM-KUSUM C, Shivashankar said.

Source: The Hindu