IISD Senior Energy Specialist Vibhuti Garg talks about green energy and its future in an exclusive interview with the Editor in Chief of The Prode, Ritwij Shandilya.
India increased its solar capacity 15-fold from 2014 to 2021, with solar power becoming a fast developing industry in the country as part of the renewable energy sector.
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), The Energy & Resources Institute (TERI) and the Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS International) are hosting a thematic track on Climate Resilience through Solar Irrigation as part of the World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) 2022 organized by TERI. The 21st edition of WSDS, entitled Towards a Resilient Planet: Ensuring a Sustainable and Equitable Future, will be held from February 16-18 in a virtual format.
The thematic track on solar irrigation, which will take place on February 18 at 2:45–4:15 PM IST (GMT+5.30), is being organized as part of a Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) supported project to provide guidance to state policymakers in India on sustainably implementing solar irrigation schemes. The research consortium will present the findings from a recently published guidebook on solar pumps, and invite experts from South Asia and East Africa to discuss how solar irrigation can help advance climate resilience in the agriculture sector. Participants will find out how to maximize the economic benefits of solar irrigation while supporting marginalized farmers and addressing sustainability concerns, such as groundwater depletion in water-stressed regions.
Nilanjan Ghose, Senior Advisor, GIZ India
(TBC)
Siddharth Goel, Senior Policy Advisor, IISD
Moderator
Priya Jadhav, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB)
Panellists
Debajit Palit, Director, Rural Energy and Livelihoods, TERI
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), an independent think tank, said in July 2021 that India lagged behind other key markets for Electric Vehicles such as China, Europe, and the United States.
Jagdev Prasad is a farmer based in Baghar village in Barachatti block of Gaya district in Bihar. He owns 3.5 acres of agricultural land in the village and often grows wheat, brinjal and other vegetables on his farm. Till about five years ago, he used to irrigate his land with conventional form of the electricity and use diesel to run the motors to ensure no damage to the crops due to lack of irrigation.
This report provides—for the first time—an open-access database of support measures for marine fisheries by the Indian Central Government and four state governments (Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu) based on information from government sources. It recommends an in-depth assessment of the socio-economic and environmental impacts of fuel support; support for deep-sea fishing, mariculture, and vessel modernization; and income support.
Government support for marine fisheries increased by 43%, from INR 1,550 crore (USD 231 million) in fiscal year (FY) 2016 to at least INR 2,225 crore (USD 316 million) in FY 2019.
Key support measures must be evaluated to ensure they contribute to socio-economic well-being in a sustainable way: fuel support, fixed-costs support, and income support.
There is a need to improve data transparency and reporting practices in support of marine fisheries to enable more informed and effective policy-making.
Marine fisheries is a key sector in India that provides nutritional security and livelihoods to millions of fishers, many of whom are small scale and low income. This makes India’s fishers particularly vulnerable if the sustainability of fisheries is undermined by overexploitation. Government support is an important factor when examining the social and environmental outcomes of the marine fisheries sector. While some government interventions play a critical role in achieving key public policy objectives such as poverty alleviation, job creation, or resource management, poorly designed support may also fail to assist low-income fishers efficiently, and it can increase fishing effort beyond sustainable levels.
Ensuring that public support to fisheries promotes sustainable development in India thus requires a review of support measures benefiting the sector and their potential implications from social, economic, and environmental perspectives. This report aims to contribute to an informed, evidence-based national discussion in this area by developing an inventory of support measures provided to marine fisheries and identifying specific programs that should be prioritized for detailed evaluation in the future.
The report finds that total estimated government support for marine fisheries increased by 43%, from INR 1,550 crore (USD 231 million) in fiscal year (FY) 2016 to at least INR 2,225 crore (USD 316 million) in FY 2019. Considering only the support measures that would most likely fall within the scope of possible new World Trade Organization rules on fisheries subsidies (i.e., subsidies to wild marine capture fishing and fishing-related activities at sea), the total decreases significantly to INR 829 crore (USD 117 million).
The report identifies three key support categories as priorities for an in-depth assessment of impacts from socio-economic and environmental sustainability perspectives: fuel support; support for deep-sea fishing, mariculture, and vessel modernization; and income support.
A guidebook for state policy-makers on maximizing the social and environmental benefits from solar pump schemes
In 2019, India launched the PM-KUSUM scheme: a major initiative to promote solar-powered irrigation, thereby boosting farmer well-being and transitioning to clean energy. This guidebook provides concrete recommendations on how state officials can sustainably deploy standalone solar pumps. First, on social outcomes, how can schemes maximize benefits for low-income farmers? Second, on the environment, how can schemes minimize risks of over-withdrawal of groundwater?
Using solar pumps in agriculture can help India reach 500 GW of clean energy by 2030, but they must be deployed sustainably to maximize the benefits for farmers and avoid negative environmental impacts.
Solar-powered irrigation can help India address agricultural challenges and generate huge social benefits, including reliable, clean electricity for farmers and significantly improved farmer incomes and well-being.
Indian States can take 5 steps to install solar pumps sustainably: coordinate among agencies, balance affordability for farmers w/ financing costs, target low-income + marginal farmers, support the right infrastructure, and properly monitor impacts.
Solarizing irrigation in India has huge potential. Cost-effective and reliable irrigation can significantly improve farmer incomes and well-being. Moving away from subsidized grid electricity can relieve financial pressure on utilities. And solar power helps India shift to clean energy, reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
At the same time, care must be taken to implement solar irrigation sustainably. There are complicated interconnections between water, energy and food—often called the “water–energy–food nexus” or WEF nexus—where interventions in one area can cause unexpected impacts in another.
This guidebook has been developed in cooperation with the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and is dedicated to supporting state policy-makers and agencies in India in the sustainable implementation of solar irrigation, considering both social and environmental sustainability. First, on social outcomes, how can schemes maximize benefits for low-income farmers? Second, on the environment, how can schemes minimize risks of over-withdrawal of groundwater?
Based on an initial needs assessment, it considers these objectives over five major themes:
This guidance is focused only on standalone and grid-connected pumps, while a future publication will address feeder solarization. It is intended to directly assist with implementing PM-KUSUM but also to be relevant for any solar irrigation scheme, including future policies once PM-KUSUM is completed. It was developed by a consortium of organizations working in collaboration: the International Institute for Sustainable Development, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP), supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Publication Type
With the launch of the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance during COP 26 in November, where India positions itself could have far-reaching implications.
The below paragraphs are from an op-ed published by The Economic Times website on December 3, 2021, and are reprinted with permission.
On November 11, at the recently concluded UN Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in Glasgow, the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance (BOGA) was launched: a diplomatic initiative led by Denmark and Costa Rica to bring together ambitious governments committed to phasing out oil and gas production. In the aftermath of COP 26, India has been singled out for its resistance to international pressure on coal. But what stance would India adopt on the new oil and gas focused alliance?
To answer this question, we first need to understand why BOGA was created, and what it aims to do. The alliance is driven by the scientific consensus that there is no room left for fossil fuel expansion. This was a central focus of the Production Gap report, co-sponsored by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), which found that countries plan to produce 120% more fossil fuels by 2030 than would be consistent with limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Similarly, IEA analysis has highlighted that no new development of fossil fuels is possible if we are to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Read the full op-ed at The Economic Times website.
Subsidies that make coal, oil and gas cheaper are widely recognized as a roadblock to a transition toward cleaner energy. But they’ve proven hard to get rid of.
This webinar, corresponding with the launch of the Guidebook for State Policy-Makers on Maximizing the Social and Environmental Benefits from Solar Pump Schemes on December 16, provided participants with a first look at the guidebook's findings, presenting key takeaways and recommendations.
Through a panel discussion with a diverse range of experts on the topic of a water–energy–food nexus approach for maximizing the potential of the PM-KUSUM scheme in India, participants engaged with the research and provided inputs for further strengthening the implementation of solar irrigation schemes at the state and regional levels.
The webinar and related guidebook were developed by IISD and research partners, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP) as part of a project supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
Shalu Agrawal, Senior Programme Lead, CEEW
Findings from the Guidebook on PM-KUSUM and Solar Irrigation and Introduction to the CEEW Solar Pumps Tool
Siddharth Goel, Senior Policy Adviser, IISD
Anas Rahman, Programme Associate, CEEW
Chair
Debajit Palit, Director, Rural Energy and Livelihoods, TERI
Speakers
Nilanjan Ghose, Senior Advisor, Indo-German Energy Programme, GIZ
Florian Postel, Junior Advisor, Indo-German Energy Programme, GIZ
