The Indian power sector has witnessed substantial growth in generation capacity, with 420 GW (as of May 2024) meeting the energy needs of more than 1.4 billion people. The growth has been primarily driven by policy reforms such as the Electricity Act, 2003, and efficiency improvements. However, the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) predicted a night-time peak shortage of 14 GW in June 2024.

India’s urban areas are expected to house about 600 million people by 2031 and 850 million people by 2051, as per the Handbook of Urban Statistics (2016) by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. However, as per an estimate by the World Bank, about 70 per cent of the urban infrastructure needed by 2047 is yet to be built. Given this massive impending growth and infrastructure requirement, there is an urgent need for energy-efficient and sustainable building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) solutions.

Despite its enormous potential, India has thus far lagged behind its global peers with no installed offshore wind capacity in the country despite the international market size reaching close to 75 GW. In India, just two of the nine coastal states – Gujarat and Tamil Nadu – have a combined offshore wind potential of 71 GW. India aims to install more than half of this capacity (37 GW) by 2030, as part of its overall non-fossil-fuel goal of 500 GW.

India has an ambitious goal of adding 450 GW of renewable energy by 2030. According to the Central Electricity Authority, the country has 147 GW of installed capacity as of May 2024. We must add 50 GW per annum in the next 6 years to meet the target set for 2030. Any shortfall is likely to be met by coal, complicating our emission reduction goals. Therefore, the exploration of alternatives that can complement mainstream renewable energy options is not just a choice but a necessity.

Climate change brought on by fossil-fuel burning and greenhouse gas emissions has led to a steady increase in global temperatures. As a result, sea surface temperatures and glacier melting have increased, eventually raising sea levels and posing a major threat to coastal cities worldwide, including Indian coastal cities. Many of these coastal cities in India are known to be major economic hubs with natural ports, cultural centres, biodiversity hotspots, and religious monuments.

Sea level rise (SLR) has been recognised as the most serious global threat. Continuing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are increasing global temperatures, causing thermal expansion of ocean water, and accelerating the melting of mountain glaciers and ice sheets, eventually raising sea levels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has projected a global mean SLR of 1.3 to 1.6 m by 2100 under the high-emission scenario. Rising sea levels are a major hazard to coastal cities worldwide, including Indian coastal cities.

The first blog delved into the principles and relevance of circular economy (CE) in reducing the overconsumption of finite resources. In this concluding blog, the authors share their experiences from the World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF) 2024, held during the beginning of the financial year 2024−25 in Brussels, the capital of Belgium and a hub of policymaking in Europe.

In this two-part blog series, the authors share some of their research learning on circular economy (CE) and revisit their experiences from the recently concluded World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF) 2024.

The Air Sensors International Conference (ASIC) 2024 was concluded at Riverside, California, USA, in May 2024. With participation from over 35 countries, the conference proceedings laid emphasis on expanding the use of sensors beyond increasing monitoring capacity. The conference enabled academics and industry experts to discuss the current challenges in the mass adoption of sensors for research and actual monitoring. During the South Asia-focused session, the authors participated in a discussion on the advances in the use of sensors in Bengaluru and Delhi NCR.