Addressing a gathering third India Energy Forum CERAWeek 2019 on Tuesday, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal said that India will soon become the world’s first “net-zero” carbon emitter by 2030.
He said that the government is in the process to phase out the old coal plants, that will help in reducing environmental pollution. This, in turn, will also create the demand for new plants and boost the virtuous cycle of investment.
He stated the data from the NITI Aayog report and said that the emission of Carbon Dioxide from the Indian Railway was around 6.84 million tons in 2014. He further said that the Indian railways will be 100 percent electrically run by 2023.
As quoted by ANI, he said, “We will demonstrate to the world, the path PM Narendra Modiji has shown to the world, the path towards climate justice and everybody contributing to make the world a better place to live in. “The energy sector is on the verge of a revolution in the country. We are willing to engage with modern technology and are looking at self-sufficiency in domestic production.”
The Union Minister further told the media that India has opened up its market to various players for boosting investment and growth. Foreign Direct Investment has been allowed in all sectors barring the matters of National Policy and Security policy matters.
Piyush Goyal also called for harmonizing the mix of all sources of commercial energy as despite being the third-largest energy consumer in the world, India’s per capita energy consumption is very low.