RGy justice’, india eliant in tHe sector
fuel and drinking water.”
He further added that by 2024, the Ghazipur landfill, which caters to half of Delhi’s waste, would not be there as the waste from there would be used to generate energy and 80% of Delhi’s power demand can be met by using the energy generated from this particular landfill alone.
Siddharth Nath Singh, Health Minister of Uttar Pradesh, cited how as a health minister he faced a challenge to provide clean water in a particular area (Sonbhadra) in Uttar Pradesh as the river water there had been polluted due to the mining activities.
He also talked about the Solar Power Policy that the Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh is working on. “We are going to implement the policy in the Bundelkhand and Poorvanchal areas of UP, and this solar power will help us come out of the power shortage that we are currently facing.”
He also talked about a scheme in the health care sector where every health centre in UP would be having solar panels fitted to generate its own electricity that would provide power to the health centres in the state, while the surplus power would be transferred to the grid.
Energy expert Vineet Goyanka stressed on the need of removing subsidy from oil and gas. He said: “The per capita demand of energy in India is increasing and we must plan accordingly to meet the demand. On the price rise of fossil fuel, Goynaka said: “Dynamics will be changed soon.”
Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi, who was present as panelist in a session opposite BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi, countered the BJP’s claim of providing welfare schemes like Ujjwala Yojana. Chaturvedi said: “BJP is just giving numbers on Ujjwala and toilets, but in reality, the gas cylinder refill has become burden for the poor women.” On the other hand, Lekhi blamed the Congress for keeping the country underdeveloped for seven decades. She said: “The Ujjwala scheme has benefitted the poor women and it has given them self-esteem.”
Rajeshwaran Dandapani of Telesto Energy said that gas is the cleanest, greenest and the cheapest fuel and it is 40% more efficient than coal. The capital investment needed to start gas distribution is high and hence we need more private players in the field.
Dr Govind Kelkar, who is an expert on energy and gender, speaking on the Ujjawala scheme of the government, said that it is the largest gender-oriented programme of the country. “It has become a tool of women empowerment. Now women get more leisure time to do things that they want to do, to rest, to enjoy their leisure time. Entitlement of a house working woman is being recognised,” she said.
Speaking at the concluding session, Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, said India would see a lot of activities in the energy sector in the coming years. “We are expecting an investment of about $300 billion in the next 10 years in the energy sector. At present, India is number three consumer and soon it will become number one,” the minister said.
Pradhan expressed hope that there would be consensus on bringing petroleum under the purview of GST. He said providing clean energy is his government’s commitment as well as responsibility. Talking about his home state Odisha, he said the state is moving towards social and political change and very soon BJP would become number one party in the state.