Government of Gujarat today announced that it had signed an MoU with Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC) and J-Pal South Asia to set up a carbon market. As such, Gujarat will be the first state in India to set up a carbon market. The MoU was finalized and signed in Gandhinagar in the presence of state’s Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.
The MoU was signed, on behalf of the Government of Gujarat, by Additional Chief Secretary of the Department of Industry, Rajiv Kumar Gupta, Front Secretary, Climate Change, Haider, and Front Secretary, Energy, Mamta Verma.
Alia Khan, Associate Director, University of Chicago and Shobhini Mukherjee, Executive Director, J-Pal, signed the agreement.
Minister of Energy Kanubhai Desai, Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister Kailasanathan, Industry Commissioner Rahul Gupta and other prominent leaders were present on the occasion.
This development will lead Gujarat to be at the forefront of sophisticated and timely global climate policy. The state will also see industries developing, which will be in line with environment protection policies. The state will be able to attract new investments in large numbers.
Gujarat has taken this initiative, under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose government has commitment for India to reach net zero emissions by 2030.
PM Modi, while addressing the UN General Assembly held in Glasgow in November 2021, had said that he was committed to take India towards Net Zero Emissions by 2030. In order to accomplish this goal India has set up a roadmap of targets:
- Reach 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel electricity capacity by 2030.
- Renewable energy should contributes 50% of the total energy, reducing carbon emissions to approximately 1 billion tons
