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The expenditure in Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) fell 9% on year to Rs 4.12 trillion in FY23 as states were not able to accelerate spending in many schemes, partly due to non-contribution of their share, sources told FE. As against the budget estimate of Rs 4.43 trillion for FY23, the CSS allocation was enhanced to Rs 4.52 trillion in the revised estimate for the year. The actual CSS spending was Rs 4.54 trillion in FY22.However, a substantial sum from Rs 4.12 trillion released to states was lying idle with their treasuries even in March either due to slower implementation or lack of transfer of states’ share (40%) in the schemes.Given the floating of funds with states in CSS from FY23, the fresh releases to states got slowed down in the initial months of FY24. So, the Centre has launched a special drive to accelerate spending in the schemes to enable states fully utilise Rs 4.76 trillion earmarked for FY24, sources said. To facilitate bulk release of funds to states for schemes, the Centre has also given ministries exemption from cash control norms till September. According to cash management guidelines, ministries were to attune bulk expenditure items to the monthly GST collection and quarterly advance tax payments for smooth exchequer control. The Centre has also released an extra instalment of (Rs 59,140 crore) tax devolution in June and fast-tracking release of funds under the interest-free Rs 1.3 trillion capex loans to states to improve their liquidity position for projects. However, with some states using the central scheme funds to finance their fiscal deficit, the Centre has also made the penal interest rate at 7%/annum from April 1 on the number of days of delay beyond 30 days in the transfer of Central share to the state nodal agency (SNA) account. The Centre earned a neat Rs 4,000 crore in interest in 2022-23 after it tightened the norms on funds lying idle with states under CSS.The Centre managed to retrieve over Rs 40,000 crore lying idle for years after the Centre issued a diktat last year that states either return or spend the unspent balances accumulated over the years in CSS. The Centre’s pre-condition that states have to fully integrate their treasuries with the Centre’s Public Financial Management System (PFMS) to be eligible to get a share in its 1 trillion 50-year interest-free capex loans scheme in FY23, also helped to unravel the extent of unspent funds in CSS.
Source: Financial Express
India is indeed likely to be a rising “great power” and its economy will have the size similar to that of the US by 2050, according to noted economics commentator Martin Wolf who has also highlighted that Western leaders are making a sensible bet on the country. “I judge that India should be able to sustain growth of GDP per head at 5 per cent a year, or so, up to 2050. With better policies, growth might even be a bit higher, though it could also be lower,” Wolf said in a column written in the Financial Times.He also said India is an obvious location for companies following a “China plus one” strategy and has the advantage over obvious competitors of a large home market. India is the world’s fifth largest economy and third largest one in terms of purchasing power. The United Nations has forecast the country’s population to touch 1.67 billion by 2050 and currently it is 1.43 billion. Wolf noted that the country’s bank balance sheets have been repaired and in all, “the credit engine is once again in quite good shape”. Noting that the country’s population and economy are both forecast to grow rapidly over coming decades, offering a counterweight to China, Wolf said closer western relations with India make good sense.“Joe Biden’s warm embrace of the once-banned Narendra Modi, now its politically dominant prime minister, in Washington and Emmanuel Macron’s equally warm embrace of the Indian leader in Paris are aimed at forging a close relationship with a country expected to be a powerful counterweight to China. “Is this a good bet for western powers? Yes. India is indeed likely to be a rising great power. Interests also align. But how far values are shared is a more open question,” he said. He also said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has forecast an annual economic growth at a little over 6 per cent from 2023 to 2028, with GDP per head growing at roughly one percentage point more slowly. “Such growth would be quite close to the averages of the past three decades. Provided the country is not buffeted by big global or domestic shocks, this sounds perfectly feasible, even rather plausible,” he said and added that the country still has huge room for catching up. It is also a young country, with a grossly underemployed labour force, potential for improving the quality of that labour force, a reasonably high savings rate and increasingly widespread hopes of greater prosperity, he added, Further, Wolf said a great deal of adaptation will be required to meet the climate change challenge, given the failure to bring global emissions down. But the energy transition also offers huge opportunities to India. “… by 2050, India’s GDP per head (at purchasing power) would reach about 30 per cent of US levels, roughly where China’s is today,” Wolf said on the assumption that the country’s GDP per head continues to grow at 5 per cent a year while that of the US grows at 1.4 per cent.Citing UN median forecasts, Wolf said that India’s population would also be 4.4 times as big as that of the US.”So, its economy would be some 30 per cent larger than the US’. It is, in sum, quite reasonable to assume that India will become a great power. It is not that hard to imagine that its economy will be of a similar size to that of the US by 2050. Thus, western leaders are making a sensible bet on an alliance of convenience with India,” he said. On Wednesday, World Bank President Ajay Banga, who is on a visit to India, said that domestic consumption provides a natural cushion to the country’s economy against global slowdown as bulk of the GDP depends on local demand.
Source: Financial Express
As on 16.07.2023, total 16 Environmental clearance (EC) proposals related to new projects in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha are under different stages of consideration at the central level as per the provisions of the EIA Notification, 2006, as amended. Out of these, 05 proposals are related to the State of Chhattisgarh, 06 proposals are related to the State of Jharkhand and 05 proposals are related to the State of Odisha. As per the provisions laid down in the Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006, as amended, the proposals are appraised by Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC), followed by consideration of recommendation of EAC by the Ministry for approval. This information was given by Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.
Source: PIB
Climate change is a cross-cutting issue spanning various Ministries/ Departments and institutions under them. Studies on adverse impacts of climate change is mainly sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Sectoral aspects of climate change are also studied by different Ministries/Departments concerning sectors like agriculture, water resources, human health, power, renewable energy, transport, urban, etc. Further, a large number of universities and government research institutions such as the Indian Institute of Technologies (IITs), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Central and State Universities and their departments also carry out climate change related research. The Government of India through its various organizations such as Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Geological Survey of India, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), G. B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, Central Water Commission, and National Institute of Hydrology has been carrying out regular scientific studies to monitor the changes in Himalayan glaciers. One such study conducted by MoEFCC and ISRO, monitored 2,018 glaciers between years 2000 to 2011, which showed that 87% of the glaciers showed no change, 12% retreated and 1% glaciers have advanced. Climate change and its impact on glaciers remains a global challenge which requires global efforts and actions. Government of India is committed to protect the glaciers and has made efforts to reduce the impact through several adaptation and mitigation measures. This includes a number of programmes under National Action Plan on Climate Change. Various R&D projects are being supported for studying Himalayan Glaciers under the National Mission for Sustaining Himalayan Ecosystem and National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change. Several areas in the Himalayan States have also been declared as National Parks or Protected Areas, such as, Gangotri National Park, Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, and Great Himalayan National Park. There is no established study for India providing a quantified attribution of climate change leading to increased outbreak of floods. While many studies monitor disasters such as floods, drought and heat, the science of attribution of these changes particularly to climate change is far more complex and currently an evolving subject. Most studies so far have relied on mathematical modelling of climate change impacts but these are not empirically verified. The occurrence of floods can be attributed to various factors, including wide variations in rainfall both in time and space with frequent departures from the normal pattern, inadequate carrying capacities of rivers, river bank erosion and silting of river beds, landslides, poor natural drainage in flood prone areas, snowmelt and glacial lake out-bursts. This information was given by Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.
Source; PIB
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said India's expected inclusion in the international bond indices could "significantly increase" foreign participation in the country's bond market and support portfolio inflows to finance the current account deficit (CAD) over the medium term. It maintained that volatile portfolio investments are “very sensitive” to changes in global financial conditions and country risk premia. Global bond index providers have been reaching out to India for the inclusion of its sovereign debt on their platforms, as the exclusion of Russia from international capital markets has led to the need to bring in a large emerging market economy. However, the finance ministry has been reluctant to provide any tax incentive such as rationalisation of capital gains tax for inclusion of G-Sec into global bond indices. Inclusion in a global bond index is also expected to exert pressure on the government to adhere to fiscal discipline and ensure that its bonds retain investment grade. The report said that India’s trade and capital account regimes remain relatively restricted despite some progress made in external trade promotion and the liberalisation of FDI and portfolio flows.
Source: Business-Standard
Japan is keen to invest ¥5 trillion, or about Rs 2.95 trillion, in India across various sectors, including steel, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Thursday. The two countries also signed a memorandum of cooperation (MoC) in semiconductors focused on key areas like research and development (R&D), manufacturing, design, and talent development. The pact was signed during a meeting of top Indian government officials with a Japanese delegation led by Nishimura Yasutoshi, minister of economy, trade and industry of Japan. “We had a very detailed discussion...about the common strategies that we can develop in terms of the path forward, exchange of best practices, exchange of new technologies, Japanese investment in India, which would be close to 5 trillion yen...over the next few years, not only in the steel sector but other Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union minister of communications and information technology said both countries will soon create an implementation organisation under the new pact for industry- and governmentlevel collaboration. He added that Rapidus, the Japanese government-backed chipmaker, will be a major element of this partnership. “Everybody wants a resilient semiconductor supply chain and in this, India and Japan are very important partners. The focus of this partnership is on finding complementary strengths of both the countries,” the minister said. The announcement comes days after India and the US signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on semiconductor supply chain and innovation. Both Indian and Japanese governments have launched schemes to incentivise local manufacturing of semiconductors. “The semiconductor industry will require a huge amount of talent and significant growth in multiple locations in the world. Japan sees India as a partner where complementary strengths can be used,” Vaishnaw added. India’s $10 billion semiconductor production-linked incentive (PLI) programme offers 50 per cent incentive of the project costs for setting up a chip plant. On the other hand, the Japanese government had in 2021 announced a $6.8 billion scheme to boost its domestic chip industry. Scindia said India and Japan will work closely with regards to the steel sector and said the delegation discussed tremendous growth prospects in India’s steel sector, which is to grow to 300 million tonne (mt) capacity by 2030 from 160 mt, at present. Discussions were also held on the recent developments in the steel industry, the current global situation and its challenges, the minister added. “Reaffirmed our commitment towards the Make in India program, along with partnerships in new domains, such as decarbonisation, green steel production and greater energy efficiency in the steel sector. Confident that the historical ties between the two countries will only see further strengthening in the future," the minister said in a tweet. Later in a statement, the steel ministry said cooperation in the steel sector and decarbonisation issues were discussed in the meeting. Recognising the recent expansion of investment activities in India by Japanese steel producers, both sides decided to support the cooperation between the public and private sectors of the two countries, which will lead to appropriate development of the global steel industry, it said. "Both sides affirmed the importance of cooperation for achieving their respective net zero goals, recognizing the heterogeneity of steel decarbonization pathways. In order to continue such cooperation, both sides decided to hold further discussions through the Steel Dialogue and other cooperation programs," the statement said.
Source: Business-Standard
At a side-event of the 4th Energy Transition Working Group in Goa today, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, in association with the International Solar Alliance, released a Roadmap of Solar Energy for Universal Energy Access. A workshop and panel discussion were also held, where energy access issues and solutions were deliberated upon. The workshop and panel discussion can be watched here. Addressing the workshop, Mr. Bhupinder Singh Bhalla, Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India highlighted: “The challenge to provide Universal Energy Access cuts across other global energy transition issues and hence, unless we make rapid strides towards providing reliable, sustainable, and affordable energy access to all, our progress in other areas will get hampered. India has made ambitious commitments as part of our transition towards clean energy. We are planning to achieve 50 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. Although a wide variety of renewable technologies are available, each with their unique advantages, solar energy in particular has emerged as the technology of choice that can play a key role in driving energy access, energy security and energy transition. Through this report on ‘Roadmap of Solar Energy for Universal Energy Access’, developed under India’s G20 presidency in 2023, we aim to showcase how solar energy, in its various configurations, can play a key role in achieving electricity access and in providing socio-economic benefits in countries around the world.” Dr. Ajay Mathur, Director General, International Solar Alliance noted: “9% of the global population still lack access to electricity. If the current growth rate continues, approximately 660 million people, accounting for 8% of the global population, will still be without electricity by 2030. Additionally, over 1.9 billion people will need clean cooking access by 2030. Sub-Saharan Africa and rural areas face the most acute energy access challenges. Solar energy combined with battery storage is emerging as the optimal choice for electrification, especially in places which are at a distance away from the grid. It offers technical, financial, and social benefits. A combination of electrification approaches centred on solar energy can be deployed to address energy access challenges in different situations.” Mr. Puneet Kumar Goel, Chief Secretary, Government of Goa, observed: “The use of diesel generators, particularly in remote regions or islands, results in significantly high cost of electricity of upto Rs. 36 per unit due to high cost of fuel due to transportation costs. Solar energy has been able to provide electricity to such regions even during natural disasters, and has seen significant cost reductions as well. India has set ambitious targets for decentralised solar, and their deployment can be supported through the use of Feed-in Tariffs and tariff restructuring for grid connected decentralised solar capacity. Additionally, battery costs are expected to come down with large scale procurement, further supporting the development of solar mini-grids. Such mini-grids can also see improved reliability and reduced power equipment costs through hybridisation of solar with wind or biomass energy. However, equipment manufacturing at scale, alongside capacity for on-ground execution and operations and maintenance, remain as bottlenecks that must be addressed.” Ms. Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and Co-Chair of UN Energy, observed, “Solar energy can pave the way for true South – South collaboration to bring developmental benefits to both Africa and India. Cumulative solar capacity is expected to reach around 2050 GW by 2027. Additionally, Solar can meet the energy needs of the remotest and most vulnerable populations, and provide last mile energy access. However, there remain two major enabling areas to be addressed with significant potential for impact. Firstly, there is a need for a massive and equitable scale up of investments in the sector across various countries. Secondly, there is a need to address the lack of enabling policies and regulations that can support the deployment of solar energy for universal energy access.” “Investment of 192 billion US Dollars Required for Providing Energy to Unelectrified Population” Based on the analysis done by the International Solar Alliance in the Roadmap of Solar Energy for Universal Energy Access released today, around 59% (396 million people) of the unelectrified population can be best suited for electrification through solar-based mini-grids, about 30% (203 million people) through grid extensions and the remaining 11% (77 million people) through Decentralized Renewable Energy solutions. To achieve this, a total investment of around USD 192 billion will be required, comprising: USD 97 billion in Solar-based mini-grids for approximately 25,738 MW of capacity; USD 18 billion in Solar-based decentralised renewable energy (DRE) solutions for about 1,224 MW of capacity; and USD 78 billion in Grid Extensions for the required infrastructure. Considering viability gap funding of 50% of project costs, financial support of around USD 48.5 billion will be needed to achieve the required mini-grid deployment. Through increased investments, ecosystem development initiatives, focused interventions, optimal use of resources, and solar PV-based cooking solutions integration with electrification initiatives, the world can accelerate into a fast-paced development scenario to achieve universal energy access by 2030. The Roadmap further states that while the technology solutions necessary for achieving energy access are available, several challenges must be addressed to sustainably scale up the deployment of these solutions. While countries widely recognize the necessity for policies and regulations, progress in this area still needs to be made, according to the report. As a result, private sector participants and local entrepreneurs are hesitant to engage in energy access projects. Intergovernmental organisations can play an instrumental role here by assisting access-deficit countries in developing policy and regulatory frameworks that create an enabling environment for interventions. Most of the population facing energy access deficit resides in underdeveloped regions where consumers struggle to afford electricity. High financial risks in these regions increase project costs for developers, widening the gap between consumer affordability and supplier viability. Risk mitigation measures and concessional financing can attract private-sector investment to energy access projects, facilitating scalability and sustainability. Another aspect predominant in energy access-deficit countries is often the need for more technical and financial expertise to drive electrification initiatives. They require skill development activities, access to global best practices, and programmes to support sectoral entrepreneurs. Training and capacity building, entrepreneurial support, and awareness creation in energy access-deficit countries are vital for long-term progress. To accomplish the necessary mini-grid deployment, approximately USD 48.5 billion in financial support is required, representing 50% of the project costs. By increasing investments, fostering ecosystem development initiatives, implementing focused interventions, making optimal use of resources, and integrating solar PV-based cooking solutions with electrification initiatives, the world can accelerate into a fast-paced development scenario, ultimately achieving universal energy access by 2030, says the report. Check out the Roadmap of Solar Energy for Universal Energy Access. About International Solar Alliance: The International Solar Alliance is an international organisation with 116 Member and Signatory countries. It works with governments to ease solar deployment and promote solar power as a sustainable transition to a carbon-neutral future. ISA’s mission is to unlock US$ 1 trillion of investments in solar by 2030 while reducing technology and its financing costs. It promotes the use of solar energy in the agriculture, health, transport, and power generation sectors. ISA Member Countries are driving change by enacting policies and regulations, sharing best practices, agreeing on common standards, and mobilising investments. Through this work, ISA has identified and designed and tested new business models for solar projects; supported governments to make their energy legislation and policies solar-friendly through Ease of Doing Solar analytics and advisory; pooled demand for solar technology from different countries; and drove down costs; improved access to finance by reducing the risks and making the sector more attractive to private investment; increased access to solar training, data and insights for solar engineers and energy policymakers. ISA is one of the first international intergovernmental organisations headquartered in India. It is partnering with multilateral development banks (MDBs), development financial institutions (DFIs), private and public sector organisations, civil society, and other international institutions to deploy cost-effective and transformational solutions through solar energy, especially in the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and the Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
Source: PIB
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) supports a scheme “Renewable Energy Research and Technology Development Programme (RE-RTD)” through various research institutions and industry to enable indigenous technology development and manufacture for wide spread applications of new and renewable energy in efficient and cost-effective manner across the country with the aim of increasing share of renewables in the energy mix in the country. MNRE has identified Solar PV Recycling as one of the priority thrust areas under RE-RTD in which some research projects have been received for recycling and recovery of critical materials. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India has notified the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022 on 2 November, 2022. These rules replace E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016 with effect from 1st April, 2023. These rules have been notified for environmentally sound management of e-waste generated from electrical and electronic equipment, including solar photovoltaic (PV) modules or panels or cells. As per these rules, every manufacturer and producer of solar photo-voltaic modules or panels or cells has been mandated to obtain registration, maintain inventory of solar PV modules, store the waste generated from Solar PV modules/panels/cells up to the year 2034-35 as per the guidelines laid down under the rules, file annual returns, comply with Standard Operating Procedures, and process the waste other than solar PV modules as per the applicable waste management rules. Further, Recycler of solar photo-voltaic modules or panels or cells shall be mandated for recovery of material as laid down by the Central Pollution Control Board. Under these rules, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) is mandated to prepare and issue guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures for collection, storage, transportation, segregation, refurbishment, dismantling, recycling and disposal of e-waste, including solar photo-voltaic modules or panels or cells waste. There is currently no proposal to setup a separate regulatory body in addition to the regulatory framework existent under the E-waste (Management) Rules, 2022 to protect against the financial losses incurred in waste collection and treatment. This information was given by the Union Minister of New Renewable Energy & Power Sh. R. K. Singh in Lok Sabha in a written reply today.
Source: PIB
The 4th Energy Transitions Working Group (ETWG) Meeting under India’s G20 Presidency began in Goa yesterday, July 19, 2023. On the sidelines of the main event, the 14 Clean Energy Ministerial and 8 Mission Innovation Meeting too commenced on Day 1 with great enthusiasm and active participation from more than 34 member countries. The event began with a warm welcome from the Government of India, followed by special addresses by other CEM Troika members (USA and Brazil) and remarks from CEM and MI Secretariats. The theme for this year is "Advancing Clean Energy Together." The first day of the CEM witnessed an impressive attendance of more than 800 individuals, including CEM Workstream coordinators, international agencies, researchers, policy experts, industry professionals, and more. Additionally, the event featured about 30 side events organised by over 50 partners. These side events focused on various themes such as energy efficiency, clean fuels, clean power, mobility and industry decarbonisation. CEM14 / MI8 also features a public-facing a Technology and Cultural showcase demonstrating cutting-edge advances in clean energy from India and around the world. The Technology and Cultural Showcase, which is being held at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium in Goa from July 19 -22 , 2023, was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Goa Dr. Pramod Sawant, in presence of Shri Sudin Dhavalikar, Minister of Power, Goa; Shri Pankaj Agarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Power, Government of India; Shri Ajay Tewari, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Power, Government of India; and Shri Abhay Bakre, Director General, Bureau of Energy Efficiency. The Technology Showcase will feature new and emerging technologies like Electric Vehicles, Hydrogen, and other clean technologies from across the world. Technology showcase will be organized under three parts, namely, Vehicle and Charging Infrastructure Showcase (by SIAM, TERI, CALSTART, and Drive to Zero), Mission Innovation (by Department of Science and Technology), and Clean Tech Start-up (TERI). The first group of 130 students of Agnel Polytechnic participated in the tech showcase. A session was arranged to address the topic of 'financing Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage', which aimed to bring together commercial banks, multilateral development banks, governments, and industry representatives. The main focus of this event was to explore strategies and ideas on how to make the financing of carbon management projects more attractive. The event on ‘Global Carbon Management Challenge’ highlighted key success factors for implementation that included workable incentivising policy frameworks, suitable financial frameworks and timely appraisal of geological CO2 storage opportunities. The session organised by Nordic Green Valley on ‘Hydrogen – the Nordic Rally to the Valley and Nordic Green Sailing’ focused on how closer cooperation and knowledge sharing between the Nordic and other countries can speed up rapid innovation and deployment of Hydrogen Valleys. The session on clean fuels deliberated on concerns related to the sustainable production and use of biomass feedstocks to slow the needed expansion of appropriate uses of biomass to produce renewable fuels, chemicals, and materials. Likewise, uncertainty regarding the amount of biomass available for sustainable, productive use reduces investor confidence in the future demand for bio-based products. The session on ‘Collaboration for Advancing Global Action on Sustainable Cooling’ highlighted sustainable cooling as a priority topic of discussion while encouraging global action. The COP and global events as a lead up to COP28, present a unique opportunity to reflect on the needs of heat-stressed countries; for climate-friendly and sustainable cooling and to strengthen and scale response and preparedness to extreme heat. At the Gigatonne Opportunity Initiative event, a coalition of private and public stakeholders agreed to collaborate to deliver solutions on the gigatonne scale and present strategies to relevant stakeholders at COP28. This call to action comes from the UNFCCC Global Innovation Hub, which also participated in the event. In the session on ‘energy compacts’, India's dedication to a clean energy future and its commitment to SDG7 was highlighted through various ambitious Energy Compacts established by government partners, private sector stakeholders, and multi-sector collaborations. The primary purpose of these compacts is to drive efforts toward achieving net-zero emissions while advancing universal energy access. The possibilities of diverse carbon removal technologies in aiding the pursuit of net-zero emissions were also part of the discussion on the first day. The panellists examined the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches, including nature-based solutions, direct air capture, and carbon capture and storage, and explored their potential synergies to attain the desired goals. The discussion also encompassed the technological obstacles and emphasised the significance of policy and regulation to promote the adoption and expansion of carbon removal technologies. A session was also organised to highlight clean energy technology requirements and possibilities for cooperation. This session specifically emphasised the major focus areas for technical pathways, identified data gaps, and explored how collaborative research and development (R&D) efforts could effectively bridge these gaps. The Ministerial plenaries are scheduled for July 21, 2023, while back-to-back G20 Energy Transition Ministerial Meeting will be held on July 22. The full list of side events and other engagements can be found in the programme agenda, which can be accessed here. India's G20 Presidency is committed to strengthening global cooperation in clean energy transition.
Source: PIB
While huge amount of investment is occurring in the renewable energy sector, a large proportion of it goes to developing countries and the rest of the world get hardly any fund, Ajay Mathur, Director General of International Solar Alliance, said on Thursday. Talking to PTI at the sidelines of an event during G20 fourth Energy Transitions Working Group meeting, Mathur said that the net zero emission target is possible. "We see a huge amount of investment occurring in renewable energy in general and solar in particular. In 2022, the investment in renewable area was approximately 500 billion dollars of which half was in the solar," he said. Mathur said, "The problem is that the vast amount of this money went to the countries like China and large emerging developing countries while rest of the world, hardly got anything." He said that the investment in Africa (African continent) for example was less than 5 per cent. Mathur said that the investment is "extremely differentiated, it is not universal". Speaking about the challenges faced by the solar energy sector, Mathur said the "large amount of solar occurring particularly as large solar farms and not as small solar across the world, where it effects common people". He said that the challenge is that the solar energy goes in the small application sector as well. Without naming any country, Mathur said that the problem is also that there is huge concentration of production capacity in one country. "We need to work to reduce supply chain constraints by geographical diversification," he added. Mathur said that renewable energy can get the world towards net zero emission goals. "I think we are at the stage globally where renewables are most effective cost-effective electricity solution. I am looking forward to price of batteries falling in next 2-3 years so that the solar plus battery becomes the electricity source of choice," he said. Damilola Ogunbiyi, special representative of the US Secretary General, told PTI that it was really good for the government of India to stress on the importance of renewable energy "specially in my continent Africa". "UN Secretary General is completely committed to renewable energy specially in the developing countries. I was very excited to participate in the event," she said. Ogyunbiyi said that the solar energy will be main source of energy. it is one of the cleanest energy and really helps to meet the targets of net zero emission by 2050. "One of the learning from the experiences is that its very important to have strong policy and strong implementation capacity," she said. The UN Secretary General representative also said that it is important to be investment ready. "You have to have the data to know where to put the solar energy and how much investment is necessary that will make for the successful implementation of solar energy in the developing countries," she added.
Source: Business-Standard
The G20 Energy Transitions Working Group meeting in Goa took note of the Green Hydrogen Innovation Centre and Global Biofuel Alliance proposed by India, a senior government official said here on Thursday. Union power secretary Pankaj Agarwal, who chaired the meeting, told reporters that there has been significant convergence on hydrogen-related issues. The working group has taken note of the Green Hydrogen Innovation Centre proposed by India and the Global Biofuel Alliance proposed to be launched by India, he said. The meeting will conclude later in the day. There has been substantive meeting of minds on low-cost financing for energy transition. The Working Group has taken note of the voluntary action plan proposed by India for doubling of pace of energy efficiency by the year 2030, he said. The ETWG meeting witnessed proactive engagement from more than 115 delegates representing G20 member countries and nine invitee countries, Agarwal said. The discussions centered around critical challenges related to climate change, sustainability, energy security, equitable energy access and financing in the context of global energy transitions, he said. The meeting emphasized the urgent need for feasible, collaborative and accountable policy actions to accelerate global energy transitions while ensuring universal energy access and just, affordable, and inclusive energy transitions in line with achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The power secretary further said the G20 members arrived at a consensus on many incremental proposals put forth by India. Efforts are ongoing to negotiate further on remaining points, he added. Affordable access to power and clean energy solutions was identified as a growing necessity, along with safeguarding the supply chains of critical materials to foster a more sustainable clean energy transition, he said. The secretary said that the outcome of the working group meeting will be presented to the Energy Ministers for the declaration during the Energy Transitions Ministerial Meeting on July 22. He expressed optimism on reaching a balanced consensus among all G20 members to support and collaborate in accelerating Energy Transition. Ajay Tewari, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Power, said that 28 countries are participating in the discussion. There has already been consensus on various issues. All paragraphs of energy efficiency have been agreed upon. Voluntary Action Plan on doubling pace of energy efficiency by 2030 has been agreed upon, he said. Tewari said the importance of developing and widely adopting both existing and emerging clean technologies was underscored, including Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS), Green and Low Carbon hydrogen and its derivatives, biofuels, Small and Modular Reactors (SMRs), among others. Participants recognized that technology cooperation and collaborative investment are vital to advance these initiatives successfully. We hope to arrive at something positive on green hydrogen consensus as well, he added. Tewari said the Indian presidency-led Energy Transitions Working Group will feature the release of 13 global studies focusing on advancing energy transitions, providing valuable insights and guidance for collective efforts in achieving transition goals. Out of these, eight studies have already been released and the remaining five will be released during the coming days. The studies included topics such as low-cost finance for energy transition, renewable energy supply chain, vulnerability of supply chain of oil and gas energy sources, role of transnational grid interconnections, doubling pace of energy efficiency, importance of biofuels in energy mix, global best practices for just transition in coal sector and critical role of small and modular reactors in energy transition, he added.
Source: Business-Standard
The Centre is working on the contours of a cyber-security bill that may define various aspects of online safety and set down objective parameters and rules spelling out what constitutes cyber fraud, providing a contemporary legal framework to tackle 21st century crime hitherto handled by amended The proposed legislation, which could either act as a supplement or be part of the larger DigitalIndia Bill, will also likely detail the penal provisions in cases of cyber breaches while specifying who is a cybercriminal under provisions of the new law, multiple sources aware of the development told ET. “It is important to have objective parameters. Most of the penal provisions for all things related to cybersecurity are currently drawn from the Indian Penal Code,” a senior government official said. “While that will continue to remain, there must be provisions defined for specific cases as well.” Management Development Institute in Gurugram and Supreme Court advocate N S Nappinai's Cybersaathi Foundation to work on the finer details of the draft of the Bill, a source said.
Mails sent to MDI and Cybersaathi Foundation did not elicit any response until the publication of this report. The first meeting of the committee formed to examine various aspects was held earlier this year in February, while a second meeting was held earlier this month in New Delhi, sources said. “It is at a pre-drafting stage right now. The government has not yet decided on whether the bill will be an independent regulation or be a part of the Digital India Act. The next meeting is sometime in September,” a source said.
Proposed Comprehensive Bill ET had earlier reported that in the draft of the DigitalIndia Bill, the government may prescribe strict‘no-go areas’for companies and internet intermediaries and include objective definitions for new-age offences such as possession and digital distribution of child sexual abuse material. The Digital India Act aims to replace the 23-year-old IT Act in its entirety, instead of amending the law. Earlier this year, the government conducted two rounds of public consultations in the pre-drafting stage of the bill that led to certain provisions being put in the draft ministry. In 2022, MeitY withdrew an older version of the Data Protection Bill after it had been pending for more than three years. A new version, named the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, was released in November 2022 for public consultation and is likely to be introduced in the Monsoon Session of Parliament this year.
Source: Economic Times
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe will embark on a two-day official visit to India on Thursday for talks with the country’s top leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to further advance and consolidate the bilateral relations. This will be Wickremesinghe’s first visit to India after being appointed President of the cash-strapped country last year following the ouster of Gotabaya Rajapaksa in a people’s uprising in July.President Wickremesinghe is undertaking the official visit to India at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry said in a statement this week. The visit takes place as both countries celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year. During the visit, President Wickremesinghe would meet his counterpart Droupadi Murmu and hold bilateral discussions with Prime Minister Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishanakar and other Indian dignitaries on a range of issues of mutual interest.”The visit will further advance and consolidate the long-standing bilateral relations,” Sri Lanka‘s foreign ministry said. In a statement in New Delhi, the External Affairs Ministry said that Sri Lanka is an important partner in India’s Neighbourhood First Policy and Vision SAGAR. “The visit will reinforce the longstanding friendship between the two countries and explore avenues for enhanced connectivity and mutually beneficial cooperation across sectors,” the statement said. Wickremesinghe has emphasised good relations with India and made it a major plank of his foreign policy. Last week, President Wickremesinghe, also the country’s finance minister, said that Sri Lanka would want to see the Indian rupee used as much as the US dollar. The visit comes as Sri Lanka’s weak economy shows signs of improvement.Sri Lanka was hit by an unprecedented financial crisis in 2022, the worst since its independence from Britain in 1948, due to a severe paucity of foreign exchange reserves. India offered Sri Lanka an economic lifeline with dedicated credit lines for fuel and essential items. In 2022, India provided about USD 4 billion in assistance to Colombo to tide over its dire economic situation. The island nation, which declared its first-ever credit default in mid-April last year, secured a bailout of USD 2.9 billion from the IMF in March this year, spanning over 4 years subject to reforms being put in place.
Source: Financial express
INTERNATIONAL
Consumers purchasing on-sale apparel and footwear in advance of the holidays helped propel total sales in Scotland higher for a second straight month, marking the greatest performance since last December, according to Scottish Retail Consortium. “This outpaced the figure for the UK as a whole and was the best monthly real terms performance since Christmas,” noted David Lonsdale, Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium. In contrast to a year before when they had grown by a more subdued 4.4 per cent, total Scottish sales last month increased by 11.3 per cent. However, when inflation was taken into account, the annual growth rate was 2.9 per cent. This was also higher than the 10.5 per cent three-month average growth and the 8.5 per cent twelve-month average growth. Sales rose 8.5 per cent on a like-for-like basis compared to a 3.3 per cent increase in June 2022. Lonsdale added, “Clothing and footwear proved to be the star of the Non-Food category, due to a combination of aggressive discounting by retailers and Scots preparing for summer holidays.”
Source: Apparel Resources
