India set to be major contributor to world's 'circular economy': Jitendra Singh

New Delhi: Highlighting the Centre's vision of "waste is the wealth", Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Tuesday said that India is set to be a major contributor to the world's "circular economy".

Speaking at an event here, Singh said that India has a huge unexplored amount of waste which is available to be converted to wealth that was not realised earlier as neither there was technology available, nor it was brought up as part of our social culture. But with the increasing pace of technological development and, more and more social awareness happening, this will become a rich source of economy which will be exclusive to India. Moreover, it will give India an edge over other major economies, he added.

The Minister highlighted that "waste is the wealth of the coming times" and it is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of India being central to global environmental action.

He said the concept of waste to wealth is relatively new and urged the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) labs to work in synergy with the MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) sector and industry as part of a wider integration in order to grow sustainably.
Jitendra Singh said that India is pledged to ensure reliable, affordable and sustainable energy to a growing population, attaining Net Zero GHG Emissions by 2070, but this ambitious target will require focused and concerted attention.

India's energy generation depends on fossil fuel (59.8 per cent), with coal contributing to about 51 per cent even though renewable energy has grown to an impressive 38.5 per cent, Singh said adding that there is therefore still a pressing need to further decarbonise the energy sector, which would require replacing fossil fuels with renewables, reducing fossil CO2 emissions from old power plants and removing unavoidable carbon emissions through carbon sequestration. This is where science and technology has to play a major role, he said. (ANI)