New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said India is the only G20 country that has fulfilled all the commitments made at the Paris COP21 Summit, ahead of schedule, highlighting the country’s progress in renewable energy, clean mobility and other areas of environmental protection.
He made the remarks after inaugurating the international conference on ‘The Future of Environment and Climate Dynamics’, where he outlined India’s achievements in addressing climate change and protecting the environment while integrating its traditional environmental values with modern development.
Speaking at the event, PM Modi said, “India is the only country in the G20… and I am stating this right in front of the top leaders of the G20. India is the only country that has fulfilled all the commitments made at the Paris COP21 Summit ahead of schedule. I am talking about the strength of India. Non-fossil fuel, solar energy capacity, curbing carbon emissions — on every parameter, India’s performance is a subject of positive discussion across the world today.”
He said initiatives and international platforms such as the vision of ‘One Sun, One World, One Grid’, the International Solar Alliance, CDRI, Global Biofuels Alliance, International Big Cat Alliance and Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) are serving as platforms for India’s dedicated commitments towards climate action and environmental protection.
“India is moving forward by integrating its ancient values of environmental protection into a modern vision. Over the past years, India has made extraordinary progress in every field and sector associated with the environment. Our major focus has been on renewable energy, and it has played a significant role in protecting the environment,” he said.
PM Modi highlighted the expansion of India’s solar energy capacity, saying that around 12 years ago, the country’s solar power capacity was approximately 2 gigawatts, while it has now crossed 160 gigawatts.
“Under the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, we launched a mission to make homes themselves the centres of solar power generation. Under this scheme, rooftop solar panels have been installed in more than 50 lakh households so far. This is greater than the total number of households in many countries around the world. For this, the government has provided financial assistance of up to around Rs 80,000 per household. Under the PM-KUSUM scheme, the government has worked to install solar pumps in the fields of 30 lakh farmers,” he said.
The Prime Minister also highlighted the government’s efforts to promote energy efficiency through LED bulbs, saying that the initiative has helped conserve electricity after LED bulbs were distributed to households in very large numbers.
Through solar energy alone, PM Modi said India has succeeded in curbing nearly 20 crore tonnes of carbon emissions.
He said India has also made significant progress in other clean energy sectors, pointing to the growth of wind and hydro power as well as the country’s efforts to expand nuclear energy generation.
“Along with solar energy, India has achieved major milestones in other clean energy sectors as well. Over the past 12 years, the country’s wind energy capacity has increased three-fold. There has been substantial growth in hydro energy capacity. And now, the country is progressing swiftly on nuclear energy generation. And those who keep delivering long lectures on the environment… when I take the work on nuclear energy forward, they will line up in the courts to stall it,” he added.
“Today India is progressing rapidly in areas such as clean mobility and green hydrogen. Just a few days ago, India’s first hydrogen train was flagged off, and it is the world’s longest hydrogen train. This marks the beginning of a new era in clean mobility,” he said.
Highlighting the rapid growth of electric mobility in the country, PM Modi said the number of Electric Vehicles in India has increased dramatically over the past 12 years.
“In the last 12 years, the number of Electric Vehicles in our country has surged by nearly 950 times — 950 times! In the year prior to 2014, fewer than 3,000 EVs were sold in India, just 3,000! In contrast, nearly 25 lakh (2.5 million) EVs were sold in India last year. This means India is seizing the opportunity of the EV revolution with full vigour, which is also benefiting the environment,” he said.
He also referred to the FASTag system on highways and expressways, saying that the technology has reduced waiting time at toll plazas and consequently helped curb fuel wastage.
The Prime Minister also highlighted the expansion of India’s Metro rail network, comparing the present network with the situation before 2014.
“Up until 2014, our country had a Metro network of roughly 250 kilometres spread across only 5 cities. Today, Metro trains operate in more than 20 cities across the country, and India has joined the ranks of nations worldwide that possess a Metro rail network exceeding 1,000 kilometres,” he said.
PM Modi also spoke about efforts to promote natural farming and climate-resilient agriculture. He said that under the National Mission on Natural Farming, 24,000 clusters covering nearly 12.5 lakh hectares have been formed across the country.
He further said that nearly 3,000 varieties of climate-resilient crops have been developed, highlighting the focus on strengthening agricultural practices in response to changing environmental conditions.
Under the ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ campaign, PM Modi said crores of trees have been planted across the country and that the tree-planting movement continues to progress steadily.
(IANS)
