Geography (Resources and Sustainable Development) by Praveen Kumar

Model Answer

Question #1. India has been facing water crisis in series of years in last decade. Over exploitation is root cause for such crisis. Answer with suitable case studies and suggest remedies to overcome this problem.

According to a recent report by NITI Aayog, the country has about 18 percent of the world’s population, but only 4 percent of its water resources, making it among the most water-stressed in the world. A large number of Indians face high to extreme water stress.

India’s dependence on an increasingly erratic monsoon for its water requirements increases this challenge. Climate change is likely to exacerbate this pressure on water resources, even as the frequency and intensity on floods and droughts in the country increases.

Groundwater: Problem and Solution

Groundwater is one of the most important sources for irrigation as well as for rural and urban domestic water supply. However, overexploitation of this valuable resource has led to its depletion.

The World Bank is helping the supporting the government’s national groundwater program, theAtalBhujalYojanato help improve groundwater management. Implemented in 8,220 gram panchayats across seven Indian states, this is the world’s largest community-led groundwater management program.

In Punjab, “PaaniBachao, Paisa Kamao” (Save Water, Earn Money) scheme incentivizes farmers to reduce groundwater usage. Around 300 enrolled farmers were given cash incentives to save electricity used for irrigation, resulting in water savings ofbetween 6 and 25 percent without any adverse effect on the yield. Similarly, where groundwater levels are reaching critical levels, thePunjab Municipal Services Improvement Projectis helping two large cities shift to surface water sources, like from local canals. The improvements in the water supply are expected to benefit more than 3 million people by 2026 and an estimated 5 million projected population by 2055.

Surface Water: Problem and Solution

Villages in the mountain state of Uttarakhand, suffered from a lack of water supply as the steep Himalayan terrain made it difficult to build and maintain the required infrastructure. For many villagers, particularly women, obtaining fresh water for domestic use meant traveling distances of over 1.6 kilometers.

Between 2006-15,Uttarakhand Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project helped over 1.57 million people in the state by improving sustainable rural water supply and sanitation services across underserved areas. The project focussed on building infrastructure and institutional capacity, including that of the village communities, that would be resilient from natural disasters in the mountain state that often experiences flash-floods, earthquakes and landslides.

The story is similar in Shimla, capital of the hill state of Himachal Pradesh. Declining water sources, rapid population growth and increasing numbers of tourists to the resort town meant that the city received water for a few hours every three days. Improvements brought about under theShimla Water Supply and Sewerage Service Delivery Reform Project have ensured that the city now receives at least 3-4 hours of water supply every day and efforts are on to move to 24x7 supply. All this has been achieved not just by fixing the pipes but by fixing the institutions that fix the pipes.

The southern state of Kerala receives one of the highest levels of rainfall in the country, but its undulating terrain drains most of the rainwater into the sea. Since the early 2000s, the state government is ensuring that rural families receive a dependable supply of piped water in their homes, at a price even low-income households can afford.Jalnidhi I(2000-2008) andJalnidhi II(2012-2017) have helped bring water into village homes by putting local communities in charge of managing their own water supply schemes.

Thus, to overcome problem of water crisis time bound implementation of govt. plans need to execute at ground level. Awareness regarding water crisis and management also to bring in priority of policy framing.

Question #2. "Clean energy is way to sustainable growth in future". Elaborate the statement in context of India’s role in clean energy transition. 

India’s announcement that it aims to reach net zero emissions by 2070 and to meet fifty percent of its electricity requirements from renewable energy sources by 2030 is a hugely significant moment for the global fight against climate change. India is pioneering a new model of economic development that could avoid the carbon-intensive approaches that many countries have pursued in the past – and provide a blueprint for other developing economies.

India’s CO₂ emissions per person put it near the bottom of the world’s emitters. The same is true of energy consumption: the average household in India consumes a tenth as much electricity as the average household in the United States.  

In a pathway to net zero emissions by 2070, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced more ambitious targets for 2030, including installing 500 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity, reducing the emissions intensity of its economy by 45%, and reducing a billion tonnes of CO₂. 

These targets are formidable, but the good news is that the clean energy transition in India is already well underway. India has overachieved its commitment made at COP 21- Paris Summit by already meeting 40% of its power capacity from non-fossil fuels- almost nine years ahead of its commitment and the share of solar and wind in India’s energy mix have grown phenomenally.

India already has a numerous policy measures in place that – if fully implemented – could address some of these challenges by accelerating the shift to cleaner and more efficient technologies. Subsidies for petrol and diesel were removed in the early 2010s, and subsidies for electric vehicles were introduced in 2019.

Government efforts to provide millions of households with fuel gas for cooking and heating are enabling a steady transition away from the use of traditional biomass such as burning wood.

A transition to clean energy is a huge economic opportunity. India is particularly well placed to become a global leader in renewable batteries and green hydrogen. These and other low-carbon technologies could create a market worth up to $80 billion in India by 2030. Support from the international community is essential to help shift India’s development onto a low-carbon path. To reach net zero emissions by 2070, the IEA estimates that $160 billion per year is needed, on average, across India’s energy economy between now and 2030. That’s three times today’s investment levels. Therefore, access of low cost long term capital is key to achieve net zero. 

Achieving net zero is not just about reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Green hydrogen will play a major role in achieving the net zero and decarbonising the hard-to-abate sectors. India aims to become a global hub for green hydrogen production and exports. India could easily create 5 million tonne green hydrogen demand thereby replacing grey hydrogen in the refineries and fertiliser sector. This 5 million tonnes will result in abatement of 28 million tonnes of CO₂. This proportion will grow as we fructify green hydrogen economy and will result in 400 million tonnes of CO₂ abatement by 2050.

As a large developing economy with over 1.3 billion people, India’s climate adaptation and mitigation ambitions are not just transformational for India but for the entire planet. NITI Aayog and IEA are committed to work together to enable India to grow, industrialize and provide a better quality of life to its citizens without the need to carbonize.