50% of India’s Power Capacity to Come from Non-Fossil Fuels Before 2030: RK Singh

India has already reduced the emission intensity of the economy by 30 per cent and will cross the target of having 50 per cent of its power capacity from non-fossil fuels before 2030, said RK Singh, Minister of Power, New & Renewable Energy.
 
While addressing at the US-India Business Council (USIBC)’s India Ideas Summit 2022, RK Singh also said “we will remain the fastest growing market for renewables in the world.”
 
“We have transformed the power sector in the last 5 years - we decided we’ll have universal access and connected about 28.9 million homes in just 19 months. Today the availability of power in rural India is 22.5 to 23 hours on an average. We brought this up from about 12 hours which is a huge transformation in this sector,” the Minister added.
 
Singh also mentioned, “our per capita emissions are among the lowest in the world. If you look at the total carbon load which accounts for global warming, our contribution to the total CO2 load till date is just 3.4 per cent and our population is 17.7 per cent. Despite all this we decided that our environment is important and set ourselves huge targets. We committed accordingly in COP21 in Paris, that in 2030, 40 % of our capacity will come from non-fossil fuels and I am happy to tell you that today we have reached 41.5 per cent of that 9 years in advance. Another target we have set for ourselves is to reduce the emission intensity of our economy by 33-35 % by 2030.”
 
The event saw participation from industry leaders, influential commentators, administrators, and lawmakers who address the audience.
 
Attending the USIBC Women’s Lead at the India Ideas Summit, Smriti Irani, Minister for Women and Child Development, said “I would like to see more women participate in decision making and be a part of the administrative, marketing, and strategic teams of organisations. I would like to see more involvement from women in the boardrooms not just to fill quotas but to significantly contribute to organisational strategy. The SME sector is flooded with women; it would be nice to have more women lead mid-size organisations and grow them into large corporations.”
 
She further added “We need to know what kind of technological skills women need and support them in attaining those for the greater good of society.”
 
Earlier in the day, the audiences were addressed by Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Finance & Corporate Affairs, India, and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology. The event also saw Gautam Adani, Founder & Chairman, Adani Group and Michael Dell, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Dell, being conferred with the Global Leadership Awards 2022.
 
Speaking on the US-India partnership, Atul Keshap, Ambassador (ret.), President, US-India Business Council, said “India and the US share a high trust relationship. It’s only fitting that we come together to design the world of the future which is powered by the digital economy, innovation & ease of doing business. Today, we heard from ministers and principals from both governments, titans of industry and commerce and thought leaders shaping relations between the United States and India. As we celebrate 75 years of India’s Independence, we are also celebrating the US and India’s partnership for global good, led, ingrained, stitched, and constantly reinforced by business leaders. Our trade and commercial partnership, led first and foremost by the private sector, is the strength and sinew of our overall relationship that helps deliver on our shared interests and advances our shared values.”