{"id":54102,"date":"2026-06-11T17:06:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:36:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/?p=54102"},"modified":"2026-06-11T17:06:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:36:55","slug":"gujarat-200-mw-solar-project-near-wild-ass-sanctuary-raises-questions-over-approvals-land-use-transmission-line-permissions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/gujarat-200-mw-solar-project-near-wild-ass-sanctuary-raises-questions-over-approvals-land-use-transmission-line-permissions\/","title":{"rendered":"Gujarat: 200 MW Solar Project Near Wild Ass Sanctuary Raises Questions Over Approvals, Land Use, Transmission Line Permissions"},"content":{"rendered":"

200 MW Solar Project Near Wild Ass Sanctuary Raises Questions Over Approvals, Land Use and Transmission Line Permissions<\/strong><\/p>\n

Administrative concerns emerge over government and grazing land use, forest clearances and transmission line approvals in an \u20b9800-crore project; CEI approvals under scrutiny after ACB corruption case<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dilip Patel
\nAhmedabad\/Surendranagar<\/strong><\/p>\n

As Gujarat accelerates its transition toward renewable energy, a 200 MW solar power project near Malvan village in Surendranagar district has come under scrutiny over administrative approvals, grazing land use, government land occupation, forest clearances and infrastructure development close to the Wild Ass Sanctuary.<\/p>\n

The controversy has gained further attention following the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) case against Gujarat’s Chief Electrical Inspector (CEI), raising questions about approval processes for large solar projects.<\/p>\n

ACB Case Puts Approvals Under Spotlight<\/h3>\n

On May 31, 2026, the ACB initiated action against the Chief Electrical Inspector of Gujarat’s Energy Department.<\/p>\n

According to the ACB, approximately \u20b95.51 lakh in cash and gift vouchers were recovered from his official vehicle. Subsequent searches at residences in Gandhinagar and Surat reportedly led to the recovery of assets worth about \u20b92.64 crore, including cash, gold, silver and other valuables.<\/p>\n

A case has been registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act.<\/p>\n

Investigators alleged that bribes were sought for issuing NOCs and safety certificates for solar projects and that, in certain cases, approvals were granted without mandatory site inspections.<\/p>\n

The 200 MW Malvan Solar Project<\/h3>\n

Annecy Solar Private Limited (ASPL), based in Gurugram, Haryana, has established a 200 MW solar power project near Malvan village in Dhrangadhra taluka.<\/p>\n

Electricity generated by the project is transmitted to GETCO’s 220 kV Dhrangadhra GIS substation through a 16.875-kilometre transmission line.<\/p>\n

The project received approval under Sections 68(1) and 164 of the Electricity Act, 2003.<\/p>\n

On September 6, 2024, the Gujarat government granted powers under Section 164, allowing the company to exercise rights similar to those of a telegraph authority for laying transmission lines across private and government land.<\/p>\n

Close to the Wild Ass Sanctuary<\/h3>\n

One of the most significant concerns relates to the project’s proximity to the Wild Ass Sanctuary.<\/p>\n

Local representations have alleged that portions of the project and transmission infrastructure are located very close to sanctuary boundaries and that questions remain regarding compliance with wildlife-related approval requirements.<\/p>\n

Environmental groups argue that the sanctuary is increasingly facing pressure from transmission infrastructure and industrial expansion.<\/p>\n

Government and Grazing Land Concerns<\/h3>\n

A detailed report submitted by the Deputy Collector of Dhrangadhra highlighted several administrative and legal concerns.<\/p>\n

According to the report:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • 73 tower and pole locations were identified.<\/li>\n
  • Several towers were reportedly located on government land.<\/li>\n
  • Approval records were unavailable for multiple locations.<\/li>\n
  • Some locations relied only on individual consent documents.<\/li>\n
  • Certain survey numbers lacked evidence of official permission.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The report also raised concerns regarding the use of grazing (gauchar) land for transmission infrastructure.<\/p>\n

    Project Economics<\/h3>\n
      \n
    • Total investment: \u20b9725\u2013875 crore<\/li>\n
    • Annual generation: 455 million units<\/li>\n
    • Annual revenue: \u20b9120\u2013130 crore<\/li>\n
    • Estimated 25-year revenue: \u20b92,730\u20133,410 crore<\/li>\n
    • Annual CO\u2082 reduction: 370,000\u2013400,000 tonnes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      What Happens Next?<\/h3>\n

      The Malvan solar project is no longer merely an energy-generation project. It has become a test case for administrative transparency, public land management, grazing land protection, wildlife conservation and regulatory compliance.<\/p>\n

      Following the ACB action, scrutiny of approvals granted by the Energy Department is expected to intensify. If investigations establish that towers were erected on government or grazing land without due process, action against responsible officials could follow.<\/p>\n

      The broader question now is whether Gujarat’s push for green energy has been accompanied by adequate compliance with environmental and administrative safeguards. The answer is likely to emerge through ongoing investigations and government reviews.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      200 MW Solar Project Near Wild Ass Sanctuary Raises Questions Over Approvals, Land Use and Transmission Line Permissions Administrative concerns emerge over government and grazing land use, forest clearances and transmission line approvals in an \u20b9800-crore project; CEI approvals under scrutiny after ACB corruption case Dilip Patel Ahmedabad\/Surendranagar As Gujarat accelerates its transition toward renewable […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[3,54,43,7,4771,6262],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paUKPQ-e4C","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54102"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54102"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54102\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54103,"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54102\/revisions\/54103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54102"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allgujaratnews.in\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}