India only G20 nation to meet Paris Climate Accord target before time: PM Modi

New Delhi: India is the only G20 country to have ensured that the pledge towards creating a green planet made at the Paris Climate Change Summit in 2015 was fulfilled even before the deadline, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

PM Modi referred to the legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted by 196 organisations and nations at the United Nations summit.

“India is the only nation that has achieved its climate target. Today, I can assure the nation and the world that India will aim for 500 GW of clean energy by 2030,” PM Modi said in his address to the nation on the 78th Independence Day.

In December last year, the government said that it fulfilled its first two Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) — to reduce emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 per cent by 2030 from the 2005 level and achieve about 40 per cent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030.

The country has now updated its targets to reduce emissions intensity of its GDP to 45 per cent by 2030 from the 2005 level, and cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources to 50 per cent by 2030.

Currently, the total installed capacity of solar photovoltaic (PV) power in the country stands at 85.47 gigawatts (GW) and wind power at 46.65 GW. The Centre has undertaken several measures and initiatives to promote the development of renewable energy (RE), including solar and wind power.

The country aims to achieve 500 GW of installed electric capacity from non-fossil sources by 2030. Towards that goal, the Centre has permitted Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 100 per cent under the automatic route.

According to the Economic Survey, the country has a well-established infrastructure to attract FDI in sectors like greenfield projects such as renewables.