Gist of Yojana and Kurukshetra – May 2019

Major highlights of Yojana and Kurushetra magazine

In this article, we have presented major highlights of Yojana and Kurushetra magazines for May 2019.

Energy sector in India

PM Modi called for supportive relationship between producers and customers and encouraged optimal use of the IEF platform. He further said that the country’s refineries are on track to meet targets, India’s consumption will grow 4.5% and efforts of distorted oil pricing will reduce with increase in consumer markets.

Four energy pillars of India:

Energy Access
Energy Efficiency
Energy Sustainability
Energy Security

India needs to establish an integrated planning process, correct imbalances in energy value chain, redesign government energy institutions, introduce “city energy ombudsman”, invest in supportive fields, improve solar energy usage and study on “clean energy” system.

How to Boost the Energy Drive?

To support clean, renewable and efficient energy, India must shift from fossil dependants to renewable. It can be done in the following criteria:

Integrate energy and environment policy
Decarbonisation and demand management and efficiency in energy policy
Energy diplomacy
Intensify exploration and enhance recovery
Increase competition
Natural Gas

Steps to Achieve Solar Potential

India planned for a target of 40 gigawatts by 2022 but only 2158 megawatts has been installed. India mostly has large scale and commercial solar power than for rural households. The main reason for this is:

Lacklustre growth
Little consumer awareness
Lack of innovative government policies
Bureaucratic concerns
Limited support from discoms

The Way Forward:

Achieving significant capacity addition
Raising consumer awareness
Processing net metering applications and subsidiaries
Loans need to be available meaning retail bank branches need to be set up

Steps to take Indian Solar Power Industry to Next Level

Launching of International Solar Alliance, setting up solar parks and introducing schemes like KUSUM and SRISTI have brought the solar project forward.

Technology: Advancements like floating solars and BIPV

Policy Push: Move towards healthier tariffs. Government must accentuate rate of solar power generation

Discom Health: Discoms should be strengthened.

Financial Reforms: Assists renewable energy sector

Enabling Ease of Doing Business: Government reforms have created a conductive environment for businesses. Targets need collaborative effort from all business partners. Government must provide policy support to synchronise growth.

Solar Energy: To catalyse India’s agricultural energy transition

The much ignored case: Irrigation happens late at night due to erratic power supply for farmers. This leads to increased water usage resulting in energy wastage.

Agriculture alone eats up 18% of the electricity produced but its contribution to GDP is a little over 5%. Mismanagement of power supply is the main reason.

The Solution

Providing energy in a more sustainable manner by the following ways:

Ensure farmers are provided with uninterrupted power supply in daytime
Prevent rising electricity demand from the sector

Solar agri-feeders installed by discoms to transmit energy to farms

Advantages of this step include:

Reduction of agricultural subsidy
Offers scalability
Eliminates structural infrastructure costs
Lower agricultural demands from discoms
Smart metering, renewable proliferation, energy efficient pumps and nationwide energy access

Energy Efficiency is Key for Sustainable Development

Government wants to reduce emission intensity of GDP from 33-35%. Energy is supposed to be increased in the following sectors:

Industrial Sector
Real Estate Sector
Consumer Appliances

Biogas – A Story Untold

India is heavily dependent on imports for energy. Compressed Biogas can boost affordability and availability of transport fuels and farmers get additional revenue called Sustainable Alternative towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT). CBG has the potential to replace CNG in the future and its uses are as follows:

Responsible waste, pollution and carbon emissions
Additional revenue
Boost in economy
Supporting national commitments
Reduction in imports
Buffer against fluctuations

Biogas: Best cooking energy option

Biogas and PNG are the best choices for cooking. LPG and Kerosene falls in the next category but firewood and pellets are most polluting.

Key facts:

Cooking fuels contribute to air pollution due to the gases they emit.
Household air pollution causes diseases.

Soot is the major cause of pneumonia and subsequent deaths in children

Houses with limited ventilation increases indoor air pollution

Initiatives Taken: National level programmes for awareness of clean fuels.

National Project on Biogas Development (NPBD)

It was launched in 1981-82. Though it was started to create a socio-economic impact, due to malpractices and corruption, the project had to be shut down.

What can work?

Adopting the service based enterprise model
Implementation in various states
Promoting PNG and making LPG only a choice
Enabling a consumer to freely make a choice

Benefits must be directly transferred to consumers to avoid leakages.

Gobar Dhan Scheme: Galvanising Organic Bio-Agro Resources-Dhan

Why: With large cattle populations, India has the potential to make villages clean and generate energy and wealth from cattle waste.

Benefits:

New biogas plants with upgraded technology
Regular power supply
Cleaner villages
Alternate source of income
Income and employment generation
Improved fertility of soils
Prevent diseases
Women involvement in development of villages
Reduction of carbon footprint

Challenges:

Maintaining regular supply becomes cumbersome
Technology must be up-to-date
Fodder production must be increased
Cattle and machines must be maintained simultaneously

Way Forward:

Incentivize Behavioral Change: Cattle must be given primary importance.

To generate waste, all the sectors need to be involved:

Private sector and local entrepreneur investments will be required
Panchayats and communities must lend a hand to maintain waste
Sanitation must be provided by sanitation provides.

Geo-Thermal and Ocean Energy Technologies

Ocean Energy: At the end of 2016, around 536 MW energy is in process.

World Scenario: Leaning countries in ocean energy technology are UK, USA, Sweden, Canada, France and South Korea.

Indian Scenario: Theoretical potential for tidal energy is 12500 MW. Theoretical potential for wave energy is 41000 MW.

Technology:

Tidal Energy – Captured in estuaries

Wave Energy – Movement of a device floating in the ocean

Current Energy – Closed cycle and open cycle technologies to extract current via Gulf Stream

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion – Closed cycle and open cycle OTEC technology

Geothermal Energy: Geothermal is renewable, clean energy to provide for all types of uses in the household.

World Scenario: Total Installed Capacity for Geothermal Power is around 13.5 GW.

Indian Scenario:

300 geothermal springs are present in India
Some sites in India are in Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, Chattisgarh, Telangana and Maharashtra

Technology – Dry steam plants, flash steam plants and binary cycle plants

Driving a Green Transition for Environment

Some steps for going green are:

Going electric for environment
Adopting electric vehicles

Benefits include:

Jobs and economic impact
Check air pollution

Coordination between stakeholders is crucial for smooth functioning. China and Netherlands have used EVs to their advantage.

Battery Challenge: Batteries are imported from China. The solution is to encourage EV use and investments must be made in research and development of this area.

Charging Infrastructure:

Charging EVs take more than just electricity. The government must select or develop appropriate technology for charging.

Rural Development

Organic Farming: It is a method of cultivating crops with the use of natural resources and manure. /it largely avoids synthetic inputs.

Principle of Organic Culture

The principle of health
The principle of ecology
The principle of fairness
The principle of care

Characteristics:

Protecting long term fertility
Providing crop nutrients
Self sufficient in gases
Weed disease and pest control
Management of livestock
Conversation of wildlife

Organic Farming for Sustainable Agriculture Development

Organic farming integrates biodiversity along with providing nutrients to crops. In 2016, Sikkim became the 1^st organic state of India.

Organic farming involves various techniques: Crop rotation, green manures, biology pest control and vermi-composting.

Real challenge that India is facing is lack of policy

Policies include:

Development of regulatory policy
Removal of quantitative restriction
Providing subsidies
Mission Organic Value Chain Development

5key issues faced by organic farmers

Supply chain is underdeveloped
Farmers are not allowed to export
Risk of loss in yield
Shortage of good quality organic inputs
Lack of organic policy

Training the farmers:

Farmers need to be informed about latest technologies
Incorporating organic tools in farming
Training must be given on fresh aspects
Constant monitoring must be done
Certificate programmes need to be made mandatory

Bio-fertilizers in Indian Farming

Bio-fertilizers are cost effective than the chemicals ones.

Products of beneficial microorganisms
Inexpensive and do not contribute to environmental pollution
Reduces subsidy burden on government

Benefits:

Not only provides nutrients but also protects plants
Help in avoiding water stress
Doses can be reduced after a few years

Constraints:

Timely supply
Lack of knowledge
Persons involved are not qualified enough

Zero Budget Natural Farming: A model for the future

Andhra Pradesh is the 1^st state to implement a ZBNF policy.

Natural Farming: Aspects integral for natural farming – Seeds treated with cow dung and urine, rejuvenated seeds and other natural wastes.