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Loss of income and livelihoods could be an unexpected ramification of using solar energy. Despite being the cleaner option than coal power plants, most state governments in India have always faced the problem of land availability when it comes to construction of solar parks. This happens in view of the fact of huge parcels of land requirement and associated land acquisition problem for construction of ultra-mega solar parks in India. The massive dependence of livelihoods of rural India on land is the root cause of such a barrier. In order to combat the problem of reluctance of landowners to sell away their land, the Government of Karnataka initiated the idea of land leasing. One such initiative is the 2000 MW Pavagada solar park in the Pavagada taluk of Karnataka.13,000 acres of land is leased out by 3000 landowners for 28 years in return of a compensation every year. Ultra- mega solar parks are undoubtedly good for the environment, but there is no certainty when it comes to the local and regional impact of such projects. This study addresses whether the land use transition in Pavagada is as good it appears to be, using the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework by DfID (1999). This study is based on the landowners and landless labourers of the Tirumani village in Pavagada taluk. It analyses the change in livelihood capitals- human, social, physical, financial and natural, livelihood strategies (occupation structure) and finally livelihood outcomes- income, consumption and number of working days. It is found that the landowners who have leased out the land have managed to gain the most, resulting in sustainable form of livelihoods for them. Conversely, landless labourers have an unsustainable livelihood by virtue of increased vulnerability due to the loss of livelihoods because of the land use change. There is also evidence of an increased gender inequality in distribution of income and job opportunities. The land use change from agriculture to solar park in Tirumani, Pavagada has escalated economic and social discrimination. As a consequence of which the overall livelihoods of the local people has taken an unsustainable turn. Voluntary land leasing from the landowners along with the national and international benefits pertaining from solar energy, makes the land use change from agriculture to solar park in Pavagada a too good to be true reality.
Keywords: Solar parks, sustainable livelihoods, land use change
