International Energy Agency: India the third largest producer of Electricity
On March 19, 2020, the Ministry of Power quoted International Energy Agency ranking in the Parliament. According to the ranking, India is the third largest producer of electricity in the world. Also, it is ranked 106th in terms of per capital consumption.
Highlights
India has now become power surplus from power deficit. Therefore, it is currently focusing on supply of quality power to consumers. As of December 2019, the National Electric Grid had an installed capacity of 368.79 GW.
Issues
Though India has surplus power, the country lacks adequate infrastructure. Still around 136 million Indians use traditional fuels such as agricultural waste, firewood, dry animal dung fuel for cooking and heating needs. This affects their health badly. According to WHO, more than 300,000 to 400,000 people in India die due to indoor air pollution.
Coal based electricity
Today, India’s power production is dominated by coal. As of May 2019, 72% of India’s electricity was generated from coal-based power plants. However, several energy institutes predict that dependence of India on coal is to reduce. For instance, the BP Energy Outlook, 2019 says that India’s primary energy consumption is to decline from 56% (2017) to 48% in 2040.
India is slowly shifting towards other sources of energy, especially solar energy. India has set a target of achieving 175 GW of renewable energy. Of this, 100 GW is to be solar power.
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Month: Current Affairs - March, 2020