11-May-2023: Ministry of Power & Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change to develop Carbon Credit Trading Scheme for Decarbonisation
The government plans to develop the Indian Carbon Market (ICM) where a national framework will be established with an objective to decarbonise the Indian economy by pricing the Green House Gas (GHG) emission through trading of the Carbon Credit Certificates. Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Ministry of Power, along with Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change are developing the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme for this purpose. A one-day ‘Stakeholder Consultation on Accredited Carbon Verifiers under ICM’ was organized in New Delhi today with participants drawn from key stakeholders including Accredited Energy Auditors, Carbon/Energy Verifiers, Sector Experts etc.
As India currently has an energy savings-based market mechanism, the new avatar Carbon Credit Trading Scheme will enhance the energy transition efforts with an increased scope that will cover the potential energy sectors in India. For these sectors, GHG emissions intensity benchmark and targets will be developed, which will be aligned with India’s emissions trajectory as per climate goals. The trading of carbon credits will take place based on the performance against these sectoral trajectories. Further, it is envisaged that there will be a development of a voluntary mechanism concurrently, to encourage GHG reduction from non-obligated sectors.
“The ICM will enable the creation of a competitive market that can provide incentives to climate actors to adopt low-cost options by attracting technology and finance towards sustainable projects that generate carbon credits. It can be a vehicle for mobilizing a significant portion of investments required by Indian economy to transition toward low-carbon pathways,” said Shri Abhay Bakre, DG BEE. He further added that this consultation will give specific guidance for developing MRV process and define eligibility criteria for Accredited Carbon Verifiers (ACVs).
The ICM will develop methodologies for estimation of carbon emissions reductions and removals from various registered projects, and stipulate the required validation, registration, verification, and issuance processes to operationalize the scheme. Monitoring, Reporting, Verification (MRV) guidelines for the emissions scheme will also be developed after consultation. A comprehensive institutional and governance structure will be setup with specific roles of each party involved in the execution of ICM. Capacity building of all entities will be undertaken for up-skilling in the subject matter.
The ICM will mobilize new mitigation opportunities through demand for emission credits by private and public entities. A well-designed, competitive carbon market mechanism would enable the reduction of GHG emissions at the least cost, both at the level of entity, as well as the overall sector and drive faster adoption of clean technologies, in a growing economy like India.
India has been at the forefront of climate action to meet the climate goals through its ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). To facilitate the achievement of India’s enhanced climate targets and to meet the future goals, the government is developing the ICM. By accelerating the transition to a low carbon economy, the ICM will facilitate achieve the NDC goal of reducing Emissions Intensity of the GDP by 45 percent by 2030 against 2005 levels.
10-May-2023: 'More than 50 thousand Amrit Sarovar completed before the deadline under Mission Amrit Sarovar' - An achievement of the Ministry of Rural Development
Hon'ble Prime Minister launched Mission Amrit Sarovar on 24th April, 2022 with a view to conserve water for the future. The objective of the mission was to develop at least 75 Amrit Sarovar in every district of the country on the occasion of Amrit Mahotsav of Independence. Overall, under this mission, a target was set to build 50 thousand Amrit Sarovar by August 15, 2023, which has been achieved ahead of schedule. So far, 50,071 Amrit Sarovar have been completed
To achieve the resolution of rain water conservation and harvesting through Mission Amrit Sarovar, the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India, acting as the nodal ministry, is working in mission mode to achieve the goal in collaboration with various ministries. From renovating the Amrit Sarovar which have reached the verge of extinction to construction of new Amrit Sarovar, a detailed action plan was prepared. The target of 50 thousand Amrit Sarovar could be achieved ahead of time because of the efforts made through "whole of government" approach and "people participation" during all aspects of the mission.
With the coordinated efforts of district administration, Panchayat Raj officials, public representatives, panchayats, voluntary organizations, various institutions and public participation in states and union territories about 1,05,243 sites have been identified as Amrit Sarovar by May 10, 2023, out of which work has already begun at 72,297 sites. So far 50,071 Amrit Sarovar have been completed.
8-May-2023: Experts reviewed the current status of the Project Cheetah
On the directions of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), a team of experts comprising of Adrian Tordiffe, Veterinary Wildlife Specialist, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, South Africa; Vincent van dan Merwe, Manager, Cheetah Metapopulation Project, The Metapopulation Initiative, South Africa; Qamar Qureshi, Lead Scientist, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun and Amit Mallick, Inspector General of Forests, National Tiger Conservation Authority, New Delhi visited the Kuno National Park on 30 April, 2023 and reviewed the current status of the Project Cheetah. The team examined all aspects of the project and submitted a comprehensive report on the way forward. The team observed that twenty cheetahs were successfully translocated to Kuno National Park (KNP) in September 2022 and February 2023 from southern Africa in the initial phase of an ambitious project to re-establish the species within its historical range in India. The project hopes to benefit global cheetah conservation efforts by providing up to 100 000 km2 of habitat in legally protected areas and an additional 600 000 km2 of habitable landscape for the species. Cheetahs fulfil a unique ecological role within the carnivore hierarchy and their restoration is expected to enhance ecosystem health in India. As a charismatic species, the cheetah can also benefit India’s broader conservation goals by improving general protection and ecotourism in areas that have been previously neglected.