Pachauri for scrapping of subsidy on kerosene
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08/07/2008
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Indian Express (New Delhi)
Advocating the removal of subsidies on non-renewable fuels like kerosene, chairman of the Nobel-prize winning Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change R K Pachauri on Tuesday urged the Government to invest this money in promoting clean and alternative sources of energy. Citing the example of kerosene, Pachauri said the huge subsidy on kerosene might have helped in lighting the lamps of poor households in the past but were no longer tenable in the face of burgeoning oil prices, especially since an estimated one-third of subsidised kerosene was being diverted for blackmarketing or adulteration. Pachauri, a member of the PM's Council on Climate Change which recently came out with a national action plan to deal with the challenge, said just half the amount spent on annual kerosene subsidy would be enough for installing solar lanterns in 65 million rural households which presently depend on kerosene for lighting. In addition to benefiting the 65 million households, the solar lanterns would also reduce carbon emissions by 5.9 million tonnes, he said. editor@expressindia.com