Lok Sabha Passes Bill To Promote Use Of Green Energy

Making a case for the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, Power Minister R K Singh stated that it is a bill of the future, implying that  the renewable energy capacity addition in the country is the need of the hour, and is one of the fastest in the world. The bill was subsequently passed by the Upper House after rejecting amendments moved by some opposition members.

The Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was introduced in Lok Sabha on August 3, 2022.  The Bill seeks to amend the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.   The Act promotes energy efficiency and conservation.  It provides for the regulation of energy consumption by equipment, appliances, buildings, and industries.  Key proposals under the Bill are:
 Obligation to use non-fossil sources of energy, Carbon trading. Energy conservation code for buildings, Applicability to residential buildings, Standards for vehicles and vessels, Regulatory powers of  the State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs), Composition of the governing council of BEE. 

These provisions will make India an attractive destination for renewable energy investment. Among other provisions, it provides for penalties for violations by industrial units or vessels as well as on manufacturers if a vehicle fails to comply with fuel consumption norms.

Recently, the Union Cabinet approved India's updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), incorporating two of the promises made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Glasgow conference -- reducing emissions intensity of GDP by 45 per cent by 2030, compared to 2005 levels, and achieving about 50 per cent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by that year. The minister also said that the government has connected every village to the electricity grid in just about 987 days when the target given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to complete the task was 1,000 days.