In the state of Maharashtra, all the grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) projects developed under the Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana will not be required to pay property tax for a period of 30 years.

To avail the tax rebate, the developers need to submit certificates issued by the authority overseeing the program (Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana).

The state government detailed in its letter, “Per Maharashtra Gram Panchayat Act, Section 124, the Gram Panchayat has the right to enforce tax on constructions done on land that is not being utilized for agricultural purposes in the village.”

In order to expedite the process of development of solar PV projects for agricultural (AG) feeder under the program, the state government has done away with the tax that the Gram Panchayat Act would have levied. A 30-year property tax rebate has been provided to developers who will be developing the solar PV projects under Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana, according to the letter.

When contacted, an MSEDCL official said, “Yes, this is an added incentive for the project developers. In Maharashtra, solar can be the cheapest way to tackle the farmer crisis. We recently tendered 1 GW under the Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana, and with this announcement we can expect an increased interest from bidders.”

Mercom previously reported that Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) recently tendered 1 GW of solar PV projects to be developed under the Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana.

The Maharashtra State Power Generation Company (MAHAGENCO) is also involved in implementing solar PV projects for the AG feeder program. When contacted, a MAHAGENCO official said, “I’ll have to see if projects auctioned by us will get the benefits of this rebate. The order has just come in, and we have not conducted our review at this time.”

MAHAGENCO recently awarded solar PV projects aggregating 250 MW under the AG Feeder program. Mercom previously reported on  MAHAGENCO’s plans to solarize Maharashtra’s agricultural feeders by constructing 1,500 MW of solar project capacity. Capacity of each individual project is expected to range from 2 MW to 50 MW.

In December 2017, MAHAGENCO issued three separate tenders for a total of 300 MW of grid-connected solar capacity to supply power to agricultural feeders. Then in March 2018, MAHAGENCO tendered another 50 MW of grid-connected solar projects to be developed in the northern region of the state. The projects will also cater to the AG feeder load of the various substations in Maharashtra.

Image credit: By ILRI  [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons