Related Topics: International Organizations, Renewbale Energy Target
News
- PM Narendra Modi has pitched for India’s inclusion in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) saying that the country faces a challenge in nuclear energy because it is not a member of the group of nuclear supplier countries and faces issue of supply of fuel.
- China has kept India out of the 48-member NSG, which controls the export of nuclear materials.
- PM also declined to commit to a reduction in coal usage, which both he said is essential to ensure electricity to millions of its citizens.
About NSG
- It was created in response to India’s 1974 atomic bomb test that challenged the credibility of laws written to prohibit nuclear proliferation.
- It is comprised of 48 states that have voluntarily agreed to coordinate their export controls to non-nuclear-weapon states.
- The NSG governs the transfers of civilian nuclear material and nuclear-related equipment and technology.
- It aims to prevent nuclear exports for commercial and peaceful purposes from being used to make nuclear weapons.
- In order to ensure that their nuclear imports are not used to develop weapons, NSG members are expected to forgo nuclear trade with governments that do not subject themselves to confidence-building international measures and inspections.
- While nations are free to discuss bilateral details with uranium suppliers even if they are out of the NSG, India has struggled to add nuclear generation capacity because of a range of challenges, including developers’ concerns over a liability law and local protests.
Why India is not ready to commit to a reduction in coal usage?
- India has the world’s third-largest coal reserves
- Coal helps produce about 72 per cent of the country’s electricity, which the Power Ministry’s draft plan seeks to reduce to 50 per cent by 2030.
- India needs to use cleaner methods of mining and consuming the fuel.
India’s Renewable Energy Target
- India had earlier set a target to achieve 175 Gigawatt of renewable energy by 2022.
- India aims to achieve 450 gigawatts of renewable power capacity in the near future and is ahead of schedule in implementing a more immediate goal of 175 gigawatts capacity from solar, wind and biomass.
- According to the NewClimate Institute think tank, India would have to play a major role — along with China and the United States (US) — in keeping global warming below the Paris agreement ceiling of 2 degrees Celsius.
- The three countries combined produce over 50 per cent of the global carbon dioxide emissions, but are also the largest renewable energy markets.
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