Face of Nation : Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Prakash Javadekar this morning said that India has already achieved half of its renewable energy production target. Mr Javadekar was addressing the 14th Conference of Parties (COP14) to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in Greater Noida.
The government plans to achieve 175GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 as part of its climate commitments. Reportedly, India currently has an installed renewable energy capacity of around 80 gigawatts.
“The world did not believe it when we announced our renewable energy target of 175 GW, which will be 40 per cent of our total energy capacity. However, we have already achieved half of our target,” he said.
He said that the Modi government has also levied a tax on coal production, promoted e-vehicles by offering various tax concessions and set up a new ministry to tackle the water scarcity in the country. “We will come out with an ambitious and appropriate Delhi Declaration tomorrow, which will ensure speedy restoration for degraded land for sustainable growth,” Mr Javadekar said.
