January 7, 2023

Keynote Speaker: S.J. Haider IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of Climate Change, Government of Gujarat

India’s transition to green economy isn’t just restricted to its leadership and the vision but also on the implementation and delivery pathways.

The Gujarat Government has a dedicated climate change department since 2009 which has enabled the government to design policies that can transform the state into an inclusive model for augmenting climate change.

Speaking at the World Climate Institute’s first Global Dialogue series, titled, Global Leadership in Climate Action – Lessons & Opportunities, S.J. Haider, Principal Secretary, Department of Climate Change, Government of Gujarat spoke about what the state’s transition journey to a greener economy has been like to date. “45 per cent (19 gigawatts) of Gujarat’s energy is generated from renewables,” he explained, “More than 400,000 households have been installed with solar rooftops, something that moves the onus of transforming to renewables solely from the government to that with the population of Gujarat”

The schemes percolate far and wide and are aimed towards reaching the grassroots for transforming the energy ecosystem of Gujarat.

“On all fronts, from sensitising people to research and development of new technologies, the Government of Gujarat is keeping no stone unturned in moving towards a net-zero target.” He added.

A case in point is Modhera, a village in Gujarat, which is also the first village in India to run completely on solar energy. The village serves as a model for other parts of the country to follow suit while also empowering the rural population in India to take the lead in the fight against climate change.

“Bearing the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in mind, we need to design policies and scheme going forward to achieve the targets set at the Paris Agreement,” commented S.J. Haider while discussing the way ahead for governments to achieve the 1.5-degree celsius temperature rise limit set during the Paris Climate Summit.

He also mentioned the need to propagate India’s latest initiative LiFE, which was launched during COP28, across the globe to bring citizens under the ambit of policy design for climate change.

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