Target of achieving 20 percent ethanol blending in petrol has been preponed to 2025

Kolkata:Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that India has taken another leap by releasing a detailed roadmap for the development of the ethanol sector on the occasion of World Environment Day.

Mr Modi addressed the World Environment Day event, jointly organized by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change today

through a video conference.

During the event the PM interacted with a farmer from Pune who shared his experience of

organic farming and use of biofuel in agriculture.Speaking on the occasion, he said that ethanol has become one of the major priorities of 21st century India.

Mr Modi said that the focus on ethanol is having a better impact on the environment as well

as on the lives of farmers.He said that the Government has resolved to meet the target of 20 percent ethanol blending in petrol by 2025. Earlier the resolve was to achieve the target by 2030 which is now preponed by 5 years.

The Prime Minister added that till 2014, on an average, only 1.5 percent of ethanol could be

blended in India which has now reached about 8.5 percent. In 2013-14, about 38 crore liters of

ethanol were purchased in the country which has now grown to more than 320 crore liters.

He said that a large part of this eightfold increase in ethanol procurement has benefitted the sugarcane farmers of the country.The Prime Minister remarked that the 21st century India can get energy only from the modernthinking and modern policies of the 21st century. With this thinking, the government is continuously taking policy decisions in every field.

He said today, a lot of emphasis is being laid on building the necessary infrastructure for the production and purchase of ethanol in the country. Most of the ethanol manufacturing units are mostly concentrated in 4-5 states where sugar production is high but now Food Grain Based

Distilleries are being established to expand this to the whole country. Modern technology based plants are also being set up in the country to make ethanol from agricultural waste.Mr Modi said that India is a strong proponent of climate justice and is moving ahead with a lofty global vision like the founding of International Solar Alliance for realizing the vision of One Sun, One World, One Grid and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure initiative.

He noted India has been included in the top 10 countries of the world in the Climate Change Performance Index.He added that India is also aware of the challenges that are being faced due to climate change and is also working actively.

The Prime Minister spoke about the hard and soft approaches taken to fight climate change.

On the hard approach, he noted that our capacity for renewable energy has increased by more

than 250 percent in the last 6-7 years. India is today among the top 5 countries of the world in

terms of installed renewable energy capacity. Especially the capacity of solar energy has

increased by about 15 times in the last 6 years.

Mr Modi said that the country has also taken historic steps with a soft approach, today the

common man of the country has joined and leading the Pro-Environment Campaign like avoiding single use plastic, beach cleaning or Swachh Bharat.

He added that the impact of giving more than 37 crore LED bulbs and more than 23 lakh Energy Efficient Fans are not discussed often. He said similarly, by providing free gas connections under the Ujjwala scheme, by providing electricity connections under the Saubhagya scheme, to crores of poor, their dependence on wood has greatly reduced. Apart from reducing pollution, it has also helped a lot in improving the health and strengthening environmental protection.

The PM said India is setting an example to the world that it is not necessary to stop development for protecting the environment.He stressed that Economy and Ecology both can go together and move forward. Andthis is the path India has chosen.(UNI)