Projects for climate change adaptation for three states gets approval

The Environment Ministry on Wednesday approved the projects for climate change adaptation submitted by Rajasthan, Gujarat and Sikkim.

The National Steering Committee on Climate Change (NSCCC), headed by Environment Secretary Ajay Narayan Jha, approved the Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) submitted by the three state governments for funding under the National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC).

These projects aim to address a range of climate change vulnerabilities in these states which are not addressed under the ongoing schemes of the Central and state governments.

An official statement said that in Rajasthan, the project seeks to build on work carried out under Phase I of the Mukhya Mantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyan to enhance the adaptive capacity of villages by making them self-reliant in terms of water requirement.

The project in Gujarat seeks to enhance the adaptive capacity of natural resource dependent communities to climate change in targeted villages of Kutch district, while in Sikkim, the project aims to address the issue of water security which are directly identified as climate resilience building interventions under the State Action Plan for Climate Change (SAPCC).

NAFCC is a flagship scheme of the central government, which provides 100 per cent grant to the state governments for implementing climate change adaptation projects. The scheme is designed to fulfill the objectives of National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) and to operationalise the SAPCCs.

"The government is encouraging tates to come up with innovative and scalable projects to develop resilience against climate change and mainstream it in the planning processes," the statement said.

During the two year period, 21 projects were approved at a total cost of Rs 435.72 crore, said the statement, adding these projects address vulnerabilities in climate sensitive sectors like agriculture, animal husbandry, water, forests and coasts among others.

--IANS

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