A Cracked Green

Context: India still has a gap between the announcements and the ground reality in achieving net-zero emission.

India’s achievement towards net-zero emission 

• India has installed 100 GW of renewable energy capacity: About 78% of capacity installed due to large-scale wind and solar power projects. 
• Accomplishment of 2/3rd renewable target: India is on track to achieve its 175 GW installation by 2022. 
• Providing help to poor countries to invest in net-zero emission: India was part of a coalition of countries in global warming mitigation. 
• India played a very constructive role during the COP 21: It initiated a Solar Alliance with France to help poor countries to invest in renewable energy. 

Challenges ahead of net-zero emission

• Indirect support of government to coal sector: India is globally the 2nd largest home to the coal-fired power plant and coal subsidies are 35% higher than the renewable subsidies.
• The GOI is not actively discouraging such investments.
• Highly insufficient performance of India in climate action: As per the Climate Action Tracker, India deems performance as “highly insufficient” due to 70% of the country’s coal energy supply.
• CO2 emissions will be double if growth rate of the economy remains the same: India’s share of global emissions will increase from 7% in 2021 to 14% by 2040.
• Gap between the commitments and the ground reality: India’s green façade now seems to be cracking as India is evident from the promotion of coal.

Way Forward

• Need to do more in different directions to achieve new goals: India has a target of achieving 40 GW of `green energy from the rooftop solar sector by 2022, but unable to achieve even 20% of it.
• So, India needs to take different pathways seriously to achieve new goals.
• Needs to cut down subsidies to the fossil fuel industry.
• Rich countries need to financially support the global south.  Materialise $100 billion climate financing.

==========================================================================================