As a developing economy, India has numerous developmental aspirations. How India meets these goals without worsening the climate crisis is at the heart of CSTEP's work. Addressing climate change and enabling a secure and sustainable future for Indian citizens require an overhaul of previous paradigms on development and resource utilisation. This is reflected in our work on developing low-carbon trajectories for development with an emphasis on nature-based solutions.
We are working with state governments across India to build capacity on risk and vulnerability assessments to inform their respective action plans on climate change. The transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy is crucial to achieving a secure and sustainable future. CSTEP's studies explore the possibility of a greater integration of renewables in the energy sector.
Explained | India’s solar push augurs a looming waste management challenge
There has in the last few years been a concerted push from policymakers and thought leaders in India to transition to a circular economy to, among other things, enable effective waste management. However, waste management in the solar photovoltaic sector still lacks clear directives.
Sustainable Tomorrow: Ways to bridge the gaps in addressing India’s climate commitments
With India’s ambitious 2030 clean energy targets and the 2070 net-zero goal, more was expected from the Union Budget 2023-24 to increase the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) and solar photovoltaics (PVs). Currently, the EV market is struggling because of low penetration rates, and solar PVs have high production costs. Integrating EVs and solar PV systems could be a viable option for electric mobility in India, but without concessional financing available, the cost of solar projects would be too high, resulting in increased EV charging costs for consumers.
Even with ‘moderate emissions’, India’s heat is set to get worse
The climate crisis is no longer a distant event that might happen in the future. It is here, bringing new and previously unimaginable challenges. Temperatures are rising, rainfall patterns are shifting, and extreme events such as record-high temperatures and heavy rainstorms are becoming more common.
This year in India, the month of February was the hottest so far since 1901. According to a study in The Lancet, published in July 2021, with two decades of data (2000-2019), more than five million people died on average each year worldwide because of extreme temperatures.
A Framework for Quantifying the Climate Co-benefits of MGNREGS Works
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is a national poverty alleviation programme that provides 100 days of guaranteed wage employment to rural households whose adult members demand unskilled manual work. The scheme includes more than 260 activities (called ‘works’) that are categorised into natural resource management (NRM)-based and non-NRM-based rural development works.
A framework for quantifying the climate co-benefits of MGNREGS works: Usharmukti - A test case
MGNREGS is a poverty alleviation programme implemented pan India. As an employment guarantee scheme, it successfully captures information on the number of jobs and assets created. However, assessment of the multiple climate co-benefits arising from assets created through the programme has been a blind spot. While there have been many studies that attest to the climate co-benefits of MGNREGS works, they have been limited in their geographical scope, resulting in constrained reporting of the accrued benefits.
Can natural gas still play the role of a transition fuel for India?
In the Union Budget 2023-24, INR 35,000 crore has been allocated to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas for achieving energy transition. A major part of this allocation could go into gas exploration and the setting up of gas infrastructure projects, details of which are yet to emerge.
Can natural gas continue to play the role of a transition fuel for India or will this lead to stranded assets in the future? There is no simple answer to this question. Let’s look at some of the key reasons.
Much to Gain From Green
Green growth refers to a rethinking of traditional development strategies by factoring in how economic growth would impact the environment, and today’s climate crisis prescribes urgent worldwide action on this.
Why India must account for climate adaptation in its budget
India has inexplicably dithered from making dedicated provisions for climate adaptation in its annual budgets, despite facing the brunt of climate change – it was listed as the seventh most vulnerable in the Climate Risk Index 2021. The upcoming budget for the financial year 2023-24 is an opportunity to demonstrate the policy intent towards ensuring climate-resilience of infrastructure, utilising nature-based solutions, and, most importantly, safeguarding the lives and livelihoods of citizens, especially those dependent on climate-sensitive sectors and living in vulnerable regions.
Biodiversity and Food Security: Two pieces of the same puzzle
India is highly dependent on the agriculture sector for its food security, and biodiversity loss leaves crops vulnerable to pests and diseases, thereby lowering yields. It also leads to the increased occurrence of invasive species and reduces the pollinator population. Thus, the interlinkage between food security and biodiversity loss needs to be understood in its entirety.