Falling short of the right measures

It is indeed heartening to see a substantial reflection of the concern around climate change both in the Economic Survey as well as the current Budget. As per the Economic Survey, 309 out of a total of 918 projects registered at a global level are from India and the National CDM Authority has accorded approval to 858 projects facilitating an investment of over Rs 70,000 crore. The finance minister goes a step further to delineate some of the policies and measures that can be put in place to facilitate win-win solutions both for climate change and for India's sustainable development. Among these are promotion of clean technology products, review of fuel emissions and regulations, greater use of solar energy and so on.

While all this laudable, one does gets a sense of disconnect between the statement on climate change and the measures delineated by the finance minister in other parts of his speech. There is little or no recognition of the role of renewable energy. The Budget allocation for renewable energy programmes seems lower than that of the previous year!

The allocation for the solar energy programme too seems lower by nearly Rs 15 crore. However, the greater emphasis on energy from urban and agricultural wastes augurs well for the climate issue. The Budget announces an excise duty reduction that emphasises the small size of a car rather than the fuel efficiency of these vehicles; a reduction in the excise duty on two wheelers with no differentiation on the basis of efficiency or pollution; an implicit continuation of subsidies and under-pricing with an eye on the forthcoming elections rather than as a measure to provide access to clean energy to the poor.

None of these can be said to be aligned with the statement on climate change. Emphasis on efficient and effective public transport systems remains imperative.

The issue of subsidies on domestic fuels and on electricity for agriculture continues to plague the country. The subsidies are poorly targeted and suffer from huge leakages that yield unwarranted benefits to the middlemen. Neither the development benefit nor the climate benefit of these is obvious.

While the move to introduce smart cards for greater effectiveness of the Public Distribution System needs to be lauded, one can only wish that the FM had been bold enough to implement it for LPG, kerosene and electricity distribution. Of course the establishment of an institutional mechanism that would play a development and coordination role holds promise. However, the world must applaud this step.