The Union Budget 2023-24 was presented against the backdrop of some critical geopolitical developments and was the last full budget before the next general elections. Signicantly, 2023 is also the year in which India became the most populated country in the planet and assumed G20 presidency. The Budget served as …
The government is working out a package of incentives for solar power plants having generation capacity of 3,000 MW or more and an announcement pertaining to this is likely to be made in the forthcoming Budget on February 29. An inter-ministerial committee headed by the Department of Industrial Policy and …
India ranks 76 in a tie with other developing economies such as Brazil and Thailand India has moved up nine spots on the Corruption Perceptions Index in 2015 to 76, from 85 in 2014, according to a new report by Transparency International. But, the jump in rankings should not be …
The government is unlikely to entertain the mineral sector’s plea to cut export duty on high-grade iron ore to nil from 30% now in the Budget, as it feels that the important steel-making raw material should be preserved for future use, even as it might lower export duty on low-grade …
Centre for Budget & Governance Accountability (CBGA) in partnership with Arghyam undertook the study ‘Tracking Policy and Budgetary Commitments for Drinking Water and Sanitation in the New Fiscal Architecture in India’ in an effort to understand the fund flow processes of the different institutions/line agencies that are involved in the …
For many years, the biggest argument against solar power was the high cost of generation. Solar is not viable without government subsidies was the popular argument. That narrative change dramatically in 2015. Now, at the turn of a new year, there is a new question on many minds: have solar …
Plug-&-play, cost pass-through recommended; private power developers happy Centre drafts imported coal-based UMPP guidelines To revive the private sector’s interest in power generation projects, the Ministry of Power released draft guidelines for awarding imported coal-based 4,000- megawatt (Mw) Ultra Mega Power Projects (UMPPs). The guidelines propose passing-through variations in input …
The Paris climate conference has been feted as historic and ambitious. US President Barack Obama has personally called Prime Minister Narendra Modi to thank him for India's cooperation to make the deal successful. But read the fine print, and it becomes clear that poorer countries have lost big time. This …
Raising global climate ambition to confine future temperature rise to 1.5°C over the 2°C aimed for so far is a laudable goal, but needs a sharp reallocation of the available carbon budget and massive funds and technology transfers with particular reference to India, a group of researchers said. Climate negotiators …
The US today welcomed the recent India-led ISA initiative which is aimed at expanding the use and development of solar energy all over the world. "There is an initiative led by India and announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which we welcome and joined into, in which we joined a …
Ignores spot power at Rs 2 a unit; state suffers 13% supply deficit As the election year inches closer, the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government is figuring out ways to meet its poll promise of power availability. While the state has signed long-term agreements for power purchase of around 5,056 megawatt …
World leaders meet today in Paris, not to discuss terrorism, but to discuss another of our generation's biggest threat, climate change. It is clear that already, when temperatures have risen by less than 1°C, over pre-industrial era, the world is seeing weird and devastating weather events. In India, farmers are …
What will happen at the Paris climate change conference of parties? This December, as leaders gather at the 21st annual congregation to resolve the global crisis, the world has changed somewhat. There is a growing acceptance verging on unanimity that climate is changing, but it is the poor who are …
The Himachal Pradesh government on Monday urged the Centre to release the second instalment of funds for the Swan River Flood Management Project in Una district. Himachal Irrigation and Public Health Minister Vidya Stokes made the demand during a meeting with Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti where she apprised …
VIJAYAWADA: Asserting that tackling the water crisis in the state is top on the government's agenda, finance minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu said an additional sum of Rs 3,000 crore would be released to complete the pending irrigation projects in Rayalaseema region. He said that the government is pooling another Rs 2,000 …
The Ethiopian government’s Communication Affairs Office says the level of support the nation is getting from the international community to assist victims of the El Nino weather conditions in the country is minimal. In a press briefing on Monday, the minister in the Government Communication Affairs Office, Redwan Hussien said …
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has won a top UN environment award - Champions of the Earth (Policy Leadership category) - for 2015, the media reported on Tuesday. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said Hasina will accept the award at a ceremony in New York on September 27, bdnews24 reported. …
In a world in which one in every three people is malnourished and 1.9 billion adults are overweight or obese, nations should at least double the share of their budgets allocated to nutrition, according to the International Food Policy Research Institute. Governments across the world currently spend “too little” to …
Clears Rs 1,500 cr SCRIPS project, Biju Expressway "The IPR 2015 has been approved after several rounds of consultation with different administrative departments and industry associations. Stress has been laid on infrastructure development in the latest IPR. The striking feature is the grant of employment based incentives," said chief secretary …
The number of buses in Delhi has decreased over the years. In the 1980s, there were 57 buses for every one lakh Delhiites. By 2007-08 the figure had fallen to 34, and today it stands at just 25. In itself, the numerical slide should imply the streets are freer. But …
