<p>A unique maximum power point tracking control method with Fitness Dependent Optimizer (FDO) has been invented for a standalone 3 HP solar photovoltaic array water pumping system. In the power conditioning unit of the proposed system, the conventional voltage source inverter is replaced with a new, modified, reduced switch seven-level inverter. The concept of adding a battery storage unit to the module of the modified seven-level inverter is clarified, in which the FDO is linked for procuring maximum power from the photovoltaic system whenever there is a swift inclement weather condition arises. Advantageously, the battery energy storage ensures its supply to the motor load when the generated photovoltaic power becomes less than the rated motor input power. The power management criterion is formulated for the proposed system to analyze power flow modes such as battery charging mode, photovoltaic domain (when battery shutoff), and battery discharging mode. The proposed system is designed with a MATLAB-Simulink platform, which covers a photovoltaic array supplying power through a DC-DC boost converter assisted with a backup of a battery storage unit and a modified seven-level inverter to drive a 3 HP single-phase induction motor pump. The supremacy of the proposed FDO-based maximum power point tracking is tested for different irradiance patterns, and the performance is compared with incremental conductance, particle swarm optimization, and cuckoo search algorithms. It is observed that the proposed FDO method competes with other MPPT techniques in the terms of perturbation free, time convergence, and dynamic efficiency. The new approach of FDO based MPPT helps to yield the efficiency of 99.5% to the PV system with a faster dynamic response. It is also observed that FDO requires less time to reach the best MPP approximately 0.25s and after convergence, a ripple-free waveform with precise MPP had been obtained.</p>