Environmental experts are calling for a green spending budget allocation to show that India is serious about meeting the enhanced targets announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at COP 26 in Glasgow. India’s climate goals will require an investment of around $35 million over this decade to achieve various goals.

The budget for the fiscal year beginning April 1, 2022 will be tabled today and climate change investments can be tabled. Public spending allocations can cut across a range of programs across sectors, some of which might be labeled as “green”. Fiscal incentives will be needed to achieve India’s ambition to increase fossil-free electricity capacity to 500 gigawatts in just nine years and other climate goals such as improving the potential of solar PV systems on rooftops for a clean source of energy.

The 2022 budget may also focus on incentives for the circular economy, urban mining and e-waste recycling, as well as a national transition fund for fossil fuel workers and MSMEs, which benefit currently receiving grants from international climate funds. The next budget should emphasize long-term climate resilience and financing to scale up nature-based solutions, build ground-level capacity, and work with state and local governments, A Nambi Appadurai, Director, Climate Resilience Practice Program, WRI India would have said.

An expenditure of Rs 1,200 crore by 2024 in the next budget could trigger pilots in various end-use applications such as green hydrogen readiness testing of natural gas pipelines, underground hydrogen storage and pilots for equipment such as furnaces, boilers and process heaters, said Hemant Mallya, Senior Program Manager, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW). Another Rs 165 crore can be allocated to support research and development on catalysts and electrolyser membranes, find substitutes for critical minerals, set up testing laboratories and enforce safety standards.

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