College of Military Engineering Pune: The First Carbon Negative Garrison of India

  • August 25, 2023
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: DPN Topics
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College of Military Engineering Pune: The First Carbon Negative Garrison of India

Subject : Environment

Section: Climate change

Context:

The College of Military Engineering (CME), Pune has achieved the status of India’s first carbon-negative military unit by adding a 5 MW solar plant, increasing its total solar capacity to 7 MW.

College of Military Engineering (CME) 

  • Founded in 1948, CME stands as a prominent training institution catering to the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force, and Friendly Foreign Countries.
  • CME specializes in providing technical and tactical training, equipping personnel to adeptly respond to changing warfare tactics and strategies.

Carbon Footprint Reduction at CME

  • The Military Engineering Services, through the office of GE(CME) Khadki, initiated various projects at CME to combat climate change and reduce carbon footprint.
  • Key Projects:
    • Implementation of a 7 MW Solar Power Plant in two phases.
    • Solar steam cooking plants for community cooking for troops.
    • Retrofitting Emission Control Devices (RECDs) on DG Sets.

Indian Armed Forces’ Environmental Responsibility

  • Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Worldwide, militaries contribute 5.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions (Conflict and Environment Observatory Report, 2022).
  • Indian Armed Forces’ Initiatives: The Indian armed forces are actively reducing their carbon footprint, showcasing their commitment to the motto “Service before Self“.
CARBON NEGATIVE:

Being carbon negative means we offset or remove more carbon from the atmosphere than we emit.

National Solar Mission

  • Also known as Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM), is a joint initiative by the Central and State Governments of India.
  • It focuses on advancing solar power within the nation and is part of the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) strategy.
  • Introduced in January 2010, the mission has undergone two revisions.
  • The ambitious goal is to achieve 100 GW of solar PV capacity by 2022.
  • The 100GW solar power capacity has been divided into the following 4 parts:
    • The rooftop solar energy generation of 40 GW.
    • Large and medium-scale grid-connected solar projects of 60 GW.
    • To achieve 15 million square meters of solar thermal collector area by 2017 and 20 million by 2022.
    • To deploy 20 million solar lighting systems for rural areas by 2022.

Other initiatives:

  • Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (KUSUM) Scheme:
    • Distribution of off-grid solar pumps, installation of solar panels on barren land, and DISCOMS purchasing excess solar energy.
  • International Solar Alliance (ISA):
    • A joint initiative of India and France to promote solar energy globally.
  • One Sun, One World, One Grid (OSOWOG):
    • Proposed global electricity grid to distribute solar power worldwide.
  • Rooftop Solar Scheme:
    • Ministry’s program promoting rooftop solar installations.
    • Offers subsidies for solar panels, cost-sharing with residential customers, and vendor incentives.
    • Sustainable Rooftop Implementation of Solar Transfiguration of India (SRISTI) initiative
  • Solar Park Scheme:
    • Aims to establish solar parks with around 500 MW capacity in various states.
    • Focuses on aggregating solar power generation through large-scale parks.
College of Military Engineering Pune: The First Carbon Negative Garrison of India Environment