A proposed solar power project by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in Gujarat's Banni grasslands is creating conflict over land use.
The project highlights a growing tension between India's national renewable energy targets and the preservation of fragile ecosystems. For the Maldhari pastoral community, the project threatens a way of life and a land dependency that has lasted for centuries.
Located in the Kachchh district, the Banni grasslands serve as a critical habitat. Abhinay Deshpande said that the project is pitting India's renewable energy ambitions against one of Asia's most fragile ecosystems and the Maldharis [1]. The pastoralists rely on these lands for grazing livestock, which forms the backbone of their local economy.
While the solar project remains under proposal, the region is also being prioritized for wildlife conservation. Senior forest officials said that three cheetahs [2], originally brought to Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park from Botswana, will be relocated to the Banni grasslands this year [2].
The introduction of these predators and the construction of large-scale solar infrastructure occur simultaneously in a region already facing environmental pressures. The Maldhari community faces the potential loss of ancestral grazing grounds to make way for solar panels, a shift that could disrupt the socio-economic stability of the pastoralist population.
India continues to expand its solar capacity to meet climate goals, but the Banni case illustrates the difficulty of siting large-scale projects without displacing indigenous communities or damaging biodiversity. The clash pits the urgent need for green energy against the immediate need to protect ecological heritage [1].
“The project is pitting India’s renewable energy ambitions against one of Asia’s most fragile ecosystems.”
This situation underscores the 'green-on-green' conflict, where renewable energy infrastructure disrupts the very biodiversity it aims to protect globally. By placing a solar farm in a critical grazing and wildlife corridor, the project risks creating a trade-off between carbon reduction and the survival of both the Maldhari culture and the relocated cheetah population.
