BENGALURU: The state government on Friday launched auto land conversion system for Renewable Energy (RE) projects. The model was developed and launched by the revenue department. Officials in the energy department said this will help in accelerating renewable energy projects in the state. They said that this will also improve the ease of doing business by simplifying the procedures and eliminating long-standing delays.
Speaking at the sidelines of the launch of the model, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said that the software has been developed to facilitate automatic land conversion after the 30-day deadline under the deemed land conversion provision and to exempt renewable energy projects from the prior land conversion requirement.
The software was first launched on a pilot basis in Chikkaballapur district. Its development is in line with changes to Section 95 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, and Rules 106(e) and 106(f) of the Karnataka Land Revenue Rules, 1996.
Gowda said all efforts are being done to support the country’s goal of achieving 500 gigawatts of RE by 2030 while ensuring energy security, environmental protection and underscoring the need to reduce dependence on fossil fuel. The software has been developed to make it easier for renewable energy developers to secure land from land owners, he added.
Gowda said that at the Global Investors Meet 2025, Karnataka signed investment agreements worth over Rs four lakh crore in the renewable energy sector, accounting for nearly 40% of the total investments received. During the meeting, the government had assured simplification of land conversion rules to promote ease of doing business.
The process has been moved online to ensure greater transparency, he said and pointed out that states like Rajasthan and Gujarat have lots of barren land that can be used for RE projects. But Karnataka has little non-agricultural land. Yet, the state does not lag behind in RE initiatives.
The minister also handed over automated land conversion documents to the CEO of Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Company symbolically. A discussion was also held with energy department officials before the launch of the software.
“Based on amendments made to the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, over the past three years, the government framed new rules and issued a notification. Under these rules, renewable energy projects are now exempted from land conversion requirements and a 30-day deadline has been set for deemed land conversion. District Commissioners are required to approve online applications within 30 days; failing which, the land conversion will be deemed to have been granted automatically. Applications may be rejected within the stipulated period only if documents are found to be incomplete or not in order, with valid reasons recorded,” said Energy Minister KJ George.