THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

NEW DELHI/BHUBANESWAR, OCTOBER 22, 2026

Odisha is finalising its dedicated Agri-PV Policy 2026 to empower farmers by combining agricultural production with solar power generation, Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo said on Thursday, announcing an ambitious target of developing 1 GW of agrivoltaic capacity in the state by 2030.

Addressing the 7th Agrivoltaics World Conference 2026 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, Singh Deo said the proposed policy would promote the concept of "One Field, Two Harvests", enabling farmers to earn income from both crop cultivation and clean energy generation while safeguarding agricultural land.

"We want to make our farmers empowered with Annadata se Urjadata tak," the Deputy Chief Minister said during his keynote address at the ministerial session, co-organised with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).

He said the policy was being designed around the principle that farmers' interests must remain paramount, with agricultural production taking precedence over solar power infrastructure.

Odisha aims to become the first state in India to introduce a dedicated policy for agrivoltaics, an emerging approach that allows solar panels to be installed above agricultural land, enabling farming and electricity generation to take place simultaneously.

Under the proposed framework, at least 90 per cent of the land covered by each project would have to remain under active cultivation, with agricultural land classification and eligibility for crop insurance protected. The safeguards are intended to ensure that the expansion of renewable energy does not come at the cost of agricultural activity or farmers' livelihoods.

The policy seeks to provide farmers with flexible participation models, allowing them either to own agrivoltaic systems and earn from both crop sales and electricity generation or to partner with solar developers in return for assured long-term lease rentals.

To attract private investment and provide greater certainty to project developers, the proposed framework includes 25-year power purchase agreements with GRIDCO, assured power offtake, grid connectivity and open-access provisions.

The state also plans to simplify the process of bringing farmers into agrivoltaic projects by integrating incentives with existing support for drip irrigation, solar pumps, cold storage facilities and agro-processing, creating opportunities to improve farm productivity alongside renewable energy generation.

Highlighting the growing threat posed by climate change, Singh Deo said agrivoltaics could help farmers adapt to rising temperatures and erratic rainfall, which are projected to pose increasing challenges to agriculture in Odisha by 2070.

Elevated solar panels can create cooler microclimates, reduce soil moisture loss and provide protection from extreme heat for crops and agricultural workers, potentially strengthening the resilience of small and marginal farmers, he said.

The proposed policy is expected to combine climate-resilient agriculture with the state's clean energy ambitions while creating additional income opportunities for rural households.

Odisha's initiative builds on the momentum generated by its Renewable Energy Policy 2022 and the state's renewable energy investor conclave held in February 2026, which secured clean energy investment commitments worth Rs 67,000 crore across projects with a combined capacity of 6.8 GW.

Ground-level implementation of agrivoltaics has already begun in the state with a 1 MW project. Odisha is also pursuing a pilot collaboration with Singapore's Nanyang Technological University to test advanced agrivoltaic technologies and assess their suitability for local agricultural conditions.

According to the state government's assessment cited at the conference, Odisha has around 40.7 lakh acres of suitable cropland and 47.7 lakh acres of fallow land that could be examined for potential agrivoltaic applications.

The proposed deployment is expected to provide a framework for assessing the technical and economic viability of combining farming with solar energy production across different agricultural landscapes.

Concluding his address, Singh Deo invited international research institutions, private investors and other states to collaborate with Odisha in developing a farmer-centric agrivoltaics ecosystem and advancing the model as a potential component of India's clean energy transition.

The conference brought together international delegates, scientists, policymakers and investors to discuss the potential of agrivoltaics in reconciling food production with renewable energy generation.

Vishal Kumar Dev, Additional Chief Secretary in charge of Energy, Sachin Ramchandra Jadhav, Commissioner-cum-Secretary of Agriculture and Farmers' Empowerment, and other senior Odisha government officials also participated in the conference.