India, being a country rich in resources and diversity, plays a crucial role in combating the global climate change issue. Each state in the country is unique in terms of its culture, geography, and energy resource use. It is important for each region to develop its own policy to leverage its potential and capacity optimally. The different initiatives, roles, and rankings of India in the context of climate change, clean energy transition and related indices provide us with a clearer picture of where India stands and what its commitments are towards mitigating climate change.
NITI Aayog’s State Energy and Climate Index (SECI)
NITI Aayog recently launched the State Energy and Climate Index (SECI), the first index dedicated to monitoring the progress made by Indian states and Union territories in the climate and energy sector. The framework of the index has been designed considering India’s objectives for climate and energy transition.
SECI aims to rank states based on independent factors such as improving energy access, energy consumption, energy efficiency, and environmental protection. This index also helps promote affordable, accessible, efficient, and clean energy transition at the state level by initiating a healthy competition among states on various dimensions of energy and climate.
The SECI assesses states and UTs on six key parameters: Discoms’ Performance, Access Affordability And Reliability Of Energy, Clean Energy Initiatives, Energy Efficiency, Environmental Sustainability, New Initiatives. Depending on the SECI scores, states and UTs are categorized into three groups – front runners, achievers, and aspirants. The top performers among states are Gujarat, Kerala, and Punjab. Goa, Tripura, and Manipur lead among smaller states.
India’s Stance on Climate Change: Pledging Towards Net Zero
At the COP-26 summit in Glasgow, the Prime Minister of India presented five key commitments, termed Panchamrit, to address climate change:
1. Increasing non-fossil installed electricity capacity to 500 GW by 2030.
2. Meeting 50% of electricity requirements from renewable energy by 2030.
3. Reducing the total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes from now till 2030.
4. Reducing the carbon intensity of its economy by less than 45% by 2030.
5. Achieving the target of Net-zero by the year 2070.
Previous Year UPSC Civil Services Examination Questions
Two questions from previous years (2016) addressed the International Solar Alliance and the Agreement at the UNFCCC Meeting in Paris, 2015. The correct answers highlighted the fact that the International Solar Alliance was not launched with the inclusion of all United Nations member countries, and the Paris agreement aims to limit greenhouse gas emissions without binding developed nations to a fixed donation towards climate change mitigation in developing countries. These examinations help evaluate an understanding about global climate efforts and India’s participation.
Climate change is a major concern for the world today and governing bodies worldwide are taking measures to control and mitigate its impacts. The role of individual states and countries in this global effort is critical and thus, being able to measure and monitor these efforts is crucial in the fight against climate change. In this context, efforts such as SECI and India’s commitment to net zero emission signify positive steps in the right direction.
