India - Spearheading Climate Solutions

• Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change released a publication titled 'India - Spearheading Climate Solutions' highlighting actions taken by the country to combat climate change.
• According to the coffee table book released, India has accomplished its ambitious targets to combat climate change.

What are the main initiatives taken by the government as per the publication?

International Solar Alliance (ISA)

• It is conceived as a coalition of solar resource rich countries to address their special energy needs and will provide a platform to collaborate on addressing the identified gaps through a common, agreed approach.
• ISA was jointly launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the then President of France, Francois Hollande in Paris on the side-lines of CoP 21 in 2015.
• The vision and mission of the alliance is to provide a dedicated platform for cooperation among solar resource rich countries that lie completely or partial between the Tropics of Capricorn & Cancer.

National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC)

• Government is implementing the NAPCC with a view to enhance the ecological sustainability of India’s development path and address climate change.
• NAPCC comprises, inter alia, of eight National Missions in specific areas of Solar Energy, Enhanced Energy Efficiency, Sustainable Habitat, Water, Sustaining the Himalayan Eco-system, Green India, Sustainable Agriculture and Strategic knowledge for Climate Change with the approved funding under sectoral outlays.
• State Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC): State governments have drafted climate strategies aligned with the eight National Missions under the NAPCC. The strategies focus on issues ranging from climate mitigation, energy efficiency, and resource conservation to climate adaptation.

FAME Scheme for E-mobility

• Union Government in April 2015 launched Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) – India Scheme with an aim to boost sales of eco-friendly vehicles in the country. It is a part of the National Mission for Electric Mobility.

Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)

• Ensure that every household has access to a tap with assured supply of water and a sewerage connection;
• Increase the amenity value of cities by developing greenery and well maintained open paces (e.g. parks); and
• Reduce pollution by switching to public transport or constructing facilities for non-motorized transport (e.g. walking and cycling).
• All these outcomes are valued by citizens, particularly women, and indicators and standards have been prescribed by the Ministry of Urban Development in the form of Service Level Benchmarks.

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

• It is an ambitious social welfare scheme of the Government launched in 2016.
• Under the scheme, the government aims to provide LPG connections to BPL households in the country.
• The scheme is aimed at replacing the unclean cooking fuels mostly used in the rural India with the clean and more efficient LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas).

UJALA scheme

• State run Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) today said it has distributed over 30 crore light emitting diode (LED) bulbs across the country under the scheme.

Swachh Bharat Mission

• Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Movement) is a campaign that was launched in 2014. The campaign seeks to clean the streets, roads and infrastructure of the country’s 4041 statutory cities and towns.

National Clean Air Program (NCAP)

• The tentative national level target of 20%–30% reduction of PM2.5 and PM10 concentration by 2024 is proposed under the NCAP taking 2017 as the base year for the comparison of concentration.
• Overall objective of the NCAP is comprehensive mitigation actions for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution besides augmenting the air quality monitoring network across the country and strengthening the awareness and capacity building activities.