The capital outlay towards green power investments by major cement companies for the planned addition of 537 MW green power, including solar and Waste Heat Recovery System (WHRS) is expected at around Rs 5,500 crore in the next two years, research and rating agency ICRA said,
The calculations is based on a per MW installation cost of Rs 12-13 crore for WHRS and Rs 4 to 4.5 crores for solar plants….
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India’s ‘Pond Man’ is restoring water bodies for sustainable future
Using a community-driven approach and sustainable methods, Ramveer Tanwar has been re-storing lakes, ponds and wetlands across India.
Among the many individuals working towards water conservation, Ramveer Tanwar’s name is one of the most prominent, so much so that he is often called ‘India’s Pond Man.’ For the last few years, he has been working to restore and revitalise these crucial water reservoirs across the country.
Tanwar’s relentless dedication and innovative approach have resulted in the restoration of nu-merous ponds across India. His work has improved water quality and local ecosystems and em-powered communities to take ownership of these invaluable water bodies. But India needs more than one Pond Man. “Every time we restore a pond, we train one local person in the whole pro-cess and make them into ‘Pond Man’, who we can help turn into a manager for our next rejuve-nation project. We hope this will help more people take up this cause,” Tanwar shares.
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1,04,035 Consumers join Rooftop Solar movement, generate 1,656 MW power in Maharashtra
The number of electricity consumers in the Maharashtra state generating power through rooftop solar panels has recently surpassed one lakh, as reported by MSEDCL Chairman and Managing Director, Lokash Chandra.
As of September 6, 2023, the number of rooftop solar consumers in the state has reached 104,035, with a total power generation capacity of 1,656 MW. This combined capacity rivals that of a large thermal or hydroelectric plant. In the fiscal year 2016-17, only 1,074 consumers had installed rooftop solar power generation projects with a total capacity of 20 MW in the state. Thanks to MSEDCL’s efforts, the number of consumers adopting rooftop solar projects has grown rapidly.
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Sanchi becomes the India’s first Solar City
Sanchi, the historic home of the Stupa, has become India's first 'solar city'. The project aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 14,324 tonnes annually and currently includes a 3 MW so-lar plant that caters to the city's energy needs. A 5 MW plant for agricultural requirements is also under construction. The city is expected to generate surplus energy once completed.
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50 most polluted regions of world in India’s northern plains: University of Chicago report
The world’s 50 most polluted regions belong to the Northern Plains of India, showed the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) report for 2023 by the University of Chicago.
Seven states and Union territories that include Bihar, Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, comprise a majority of this region, according to the report. They also face the greatest health burden due to particulate pollution in India, the report added
In the most polluted region of the Northern Plains — the national capital territory of Delhi — 18 million residents are on track to lose 11.9 years of life expectancy on average relative to the World Health Organization guidelines and 8.5 years relative to the national guideline if current pollution levels persist, the report suggested.
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B20 Task Force on Climate Change recommends just and equitable transition to clean energy
The B20 India Task Force on Energy, Climate Change, and Resource Efficiency has recom-mended a just and equitable transition to clean energy that is inclusive and resilient. The task force calls for global cooperation to achieve net zero transitions and emphasizes the need for collaboration, innovation, and financing options that benefit everyone, especially in the global south. The recommendations also promote a circular economy and highlight the urgency of ad-dressing climate change while reducing dependence on fossil fuels. also promote a circular economy and highlight the urgency of addressing climate change while reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
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Offshore wind energy: India set to harness coastal breezes
The country recently unveiled a multi-model approach to offshore wind energy expansion. The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has assumed the role of the nodal min-istry, while the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) will serve as the nodal agency, re-sponsible for supervising the advancement of offshore wind energy initiatives in India.
Despite the formulation of a dedicated policy just eight years ago, the offshore wind sector has not seen significant progress over the past three decades. This marks a significant step forward, albeit one that took time to materialise.
Eight zones off the coasts of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have been identified as potential offshore wind energy zones
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August rains 30% below normal for the first time; season close to ‘drought’ mark
Hit hard by El Niño, this month is set to be India’s driest August ever in records going back to 1901. The month is likely to log a massive rain deficit of over 33% — with as many as 20 days of the monsoon remaining in a “break” — which has raised the threat of the season (June-September) ending in deficient rainfall
The driest month of August was recorded in 2005, when 191.2mm of rain was logged, 25% below normal. With the monsoon currently in another break spell, it’s highly unlikely that this month’s total would exceed 170-175mm, which would make it the first time that a rainfall deficit of 30% or more is recorded in August.
Ironically, the sharp downturn came after an above-par monsoon performance in July, when the country recorded an average of 315.9mm of rain, 13% above normal and the second highest in the last 18 years. Most experts attribute the failure of rains this month to the El Niño, which had strengthened during the previous month into a “moderate” event and began leaving its signature in the atmospheric currents.
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Average Indian loses 5 years life to air pollution.
An average Indian citizen loses around 5.3 years of life expectancy due to air pollution, while people in Delhi, often labelled the most polluted city in the world, lose by as much as 11.9 years of their life, an updated Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago has found.
India ranked second among the countries worst hit by air pollution with Bangladesh topping the list. An average citizen in Bangladesh loses 6.8 years of their life to air pollution. Nepal ranked third followed by Pakistan and Mongolia.
The Index, based on the WHO standards factoring annual average PM2.5 (fine particulate mat-ter) levels, shows several areas of India faring poorly with air pollution shortening lives by 11.2 years in Gurgaon, 10.8 years in Faridabad, 10.1 years in Jaunpur (Uttar Pradesh), 9.7 years each in Lucknow and Kanpur, and 8.7 years in Patna, the Times of India reported.
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How does the Mines and Mineral Bill 2023 plan to bring the private sector into mineral exploration?
On August 2, Parliament passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2023, in a bid to attract private sector investment in the exploration of critical and deep-seated minerals in the country. The Bill puts six minerals, including lithium — used in electric vehicle batteries and other energy storage solutions — into a list of “critical and strategic” minerals. The exploration and mining of these six minerals, previously classified as atomic minerals, were restricted to government-owned entities