Towards a cleaner energy economy: India’s roadmap to renewable energy

In 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced India’s target to achieve net zero emissions by 2070 at the COP-26 (26th United Nations Climate Change Conference. It is one of the significant announcements made by the PM as it makes India a leader in the global fight against climate change. Along with achieving the target of net zero emissions, India also aims to meet fifty per cent of its electricity requirements from renewable energy resources by 2030.

The development of renewable energy resources to avoid carbon emissions is allowing India to pioneer a new development model of economic growth that is different from many other countries that have deployed carbon-intensive approaches to grow in the past.

Being one of the fastest-growing developing nations in the world, the scale of transformation in India is stunning. The country has not only witnessed steady economic growth but has also focused on developing new infrastructure, buildings, highways, factories and strong transportation networks. Resources like coal and oil have been the bedrock of this unprecedented development, and modernization has allowed millions of Indians to access modern energy services. This also includes electricity as one of the other major resources. With projects like “Har Ghar Bijli Yojana”, the government of India has successfully added millions of new electricity connections each year.

India’s sheer size and aspirations to create a greener sustainable planet mean that its renewable energy demand is set to grow manifolds in comparison to any other country in the coming decades. In this regard, PM has announced more ambitious targets for 2030, including installing 500 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity, reducing the emissions intensity of its economy by 45%, and reducing a billion tonnes of CO2.

In line with these aspirational targets, the automotive sector in India is also speeding up to reduce its carbon footprint. The sector is already on the brink of a significant transformation where Electronic Vehicles (EVs) are charting the new path for a greener sustainable environment. There is no denying the fact that rapid urbanization and India’s increasing population are bound to put additional pressure on transport infrastructure with more and more people adopting a personal mode of transit. And in such a scenario Electric Vehicles serve as one of the fittest options to reduce carbon emissions.

The government of India has already proposed a slew of policies such as implementing a battery swapping policy, formalizing interoperability standards, creating special mobility zones for EVs among others that aim to provide an impetus to the adoption of EVs at a faster pace in the coming decade. The government is also putting in efforts to promote public charging stations in each state and supporting state governments in forming favourable electric vehicle policies.

Additionally, efforts like industry partnerships to provide resources to auto manufacturers for EVs are further strengthening India’s target to achieve zero carbon emissions and create a greener mode of transportation across the country.

India’s clean energy transition is already well underway. The country has already achieved 40% of its power capacity from non-fossil fuels and the share of solar and wind energy has also grown phenomenally. The government has several impactful policy measures in place and if fully implemented, we will witness a steady shift to cleaner and more efficient technologies like EVs in the coming decade.