Modi says behavioural change can help fight global warming, invites technology for coal gasification

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said change in behaviour people can help meet the challenge of global warming and invited foreign technology for gasification of coal to reduce emissions from the natural resource.

The Prime Minister, who was speaking at an interaction session at Bloomberg Global Business Forum in New York, said India has set a new target of producing 450 Gigawatt of renewable energy.

"Indian lifestyle is an example for the world. We believe that the earth is our mother and we have no right to exploit it. We only have the right to milk it, not exploit. India is associated with a thought where there is no place for greed. I believe that only people's behaviour can take us out of the challenge of global warming, more than the efforts of governments. We should move ahead by associating human behaviour with nature," he said.

He said India had earlier set a target to achieve 175 Gigawatt of renewable energy.

"I am happy we are way ahead of the time. We have already achieved the work of 120 Gigawatt. While I was speaking in the UN yesterday, I have set a new target of 450 Gigawatt of renewable energy," he said when former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg asked about a question on renewable energy.

"We have taken several policy initiatives and also given incentives. Our efforts are to empower the possibilities. We have a challenge of nuclear energy. Since we are not a member of NSG, we did not have the supply of fuel as we required. If that is resolved then we can work as a model in the renewable energy sector," he added.

Modi called for a change in the coal mining process to mitigate its effect on the environment and also suggested coal gasification.

He said India has the third-largest coal reserves and cannot ignore the resource.

"India has the third biggest coal reserves. Being a poor country, we cannot ignore this. But there is a solution which is to change the way of mining and to start underground mining so that the environment does not get affected," he said.

"The second solution is coal gasification. It provides clean energy. We invite the world to come with technology. The gas can then be used for mobility as well as a source of energy. We are focusing to make coal mining environment-friendly," the Prime Minister added.

Modi referred to the government's initiative of Jal Jeevan Mission for water renewal.

"Water is another issue other than climate change. India has taken an initiative of Jal Jeevan Mission. We want to run a campaign focusing on rainwater harvesting, recycling, reuse etc. We also want to revive our rivers," he said.

The Prime Minister said the government has prohibited the use of single-use plastic and said a nation-wide campaign will be held on October 2.

"We have prohibited the use of single-use plastic. We have run a movement to discourage the use of plastic. A nationwide campaign against single-use plastic will be held on Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary on October 2. We are working in various sectors at a time with an emphasis on climate and environment," he said.