India's challenge is to meet growth goals while pursuing clean energy: Prez

NEW DELHI: President Pranab Mukherjee today said India faces a huge responsibility and challenge in meeting its developmental requirements while remaining committed at the same time to clean energy.

"India supports around 17 per cent of the world's population, but its energy and electricity consumption is just around five per cent of the world consumption," he said here even as a crucial climate meet is underway in Paris.

Inaugurating 'Umang-2015', a Festival of Energy at Dr Rajendra Prasad Sarvodaya Vidyalaya School, he said that India's per capita consumption of energy and electricity is less than one third of the world average.

He declared the school located in the President's Estate a solar-powered green school and also launched Sajag, an App on energy education.

In order to sustain a growth rate of over eight per cent through the next two decades, India will need to grow its primary energy supply by three to four times and electricity supply by at least five to seven times of its current consumption, Mukherjee said.

"Therefore, we as a country, have a huge responsibility and challenge to meet our developmental requirements and, at the same time, ensure that we remain committed to clean energy.

"Through the contribution of each individual, we can achieve this task, which appears to be, if not impossible, but difficult," Mukherjee said.

He said that the theme for Umang-2015, 'Nayi Zindagi ki Umang, Swachh Urja ke Sang', is a timely one, particularly when countries of the world brainstorm in Paris to halt global warming before the planet becomes two degrees hotter than it was in pre-industrial days.

Energy production contributes to 35 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions followed by industrial production at 18 per cent, agriculture (14 per cent), transportation (14 per cent), deforestation (10 per cent), construction (10 per cent) and waste and water treatment (6 per cent).