Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched the India Cooling Action Plan (ICAP) recently in New Delhi.
ICAP provides an integrated vision towards cooling across sectors encompassing inter alia reduction of cooling demand, refrigerant transition, enhancing energy efficiency and better technology options with a 20-year time horizon.
Context
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched the India Cooling Action Plan (ICAP) recently in New Delhi.
ICAP provides an integrated vision towards cooling across sectors encompassing inter alia reduction of cooling demand, refrigerant transition, enhancing energy efficiency and better technology options with a 20-year time horizon.
About
The India Cooling Action seeks to:
Reduce cooling demand across sectors by 20% to 25% by 2037-38.
Reduce refrigerant demand by 25% to 30% by 2037-38.
Reduce cooling energy requirements by 25% to 40% by 2037-38.
Recognize "cooling and related areas" as a thrust area of research under the national S&T Programme.
Training and certification of 100,000 servicing sector technicians by 2022-23, synergizing with Skill India Mission. These actions will have significant climate benefits.
Socio-economic benefits:
Thermal comfort for all - provision for cooling for EWS and LIG housing.
Sustainable cooling - low GHG emissions related to cooling
Doubling Farmers Income - better cold chain infrastructure - better value of products to farmers, less wastage of produce.
Skilled workforce for better livelihoods and environmental protection.
Make in India - domestic manufacturing of air-conditioning and related cooling equipment's
Robust R&D on alternative cooling technologies - to provide the push to innovation in a cooling sector.
Cooling is also linked to human health and productivity.
Linkages of cooling with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are well acknowledged.
The cross-sectoral nature of cooling and its use in the development of the economy makes provision for cooling an important developmental necessity.
The development of ICAP has been a multi-stakeholder inclusive process encompassing different Government Ministries/Departments/Organizations, Industry and Industry Associations, Think tanks, Academic and R&D institutions.