The Parthenon Sculptures, at the centre of the row between Britain and Greece (GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Why in news?
- A diplomatic row sparked between Greece and the UK after British Prime Minister cancelled a meeting with his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis over the status of the Parthenon Sculptures housed at the British Museum.
- Over the years, Greece has repeatedly asked for the sculptures’ permanent return to Athens, but Britain and the British Museum have refused to do so.
What are the Parthenon Sculptures?
- The Parthenon Sculptures at the British Museum are more than 30 ancient stone sculptures from Greece that are more than 2,000 years old.
- Most of them originally adorned the walls and grounds of the Parthenon temple on the rocky Acropolis hill in Athens.
- Completed in 432 BC, the temple is dedicated to the goddess Athena and is seen as the crowning glory of Athens’ Golden Age.
- While one notable sculpture, which is 75 metres long, depicts a procession for the birthday of Athena, others show gods, heroes or mythical creatures.
How did the sculptures reach Britain?
- They were removed from the Parthenon in the early 19th century by Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin and then-British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.
- The marbles were taken to Britain and purchased by the British Museum in 1816.
Were the sculptures stolen?
- While Athen accused Lord Elgin of theft, he insisted he had permission to remove the marbles from the Ottoman Empire, which used to control Athen at the time. The original letter giving him permission, however, has been lost and its text remains disputed.
- Athens has been demanding the return of the sculptures since it became independent in the early 1830s.
- The campaign gained momentum in the 1980s after Greek Oscar-nominated actress Melina Mercouri launched a movement for their return when she was culture minister between 1981 and 1989.
How did Britain respond?
- The British Museum claims that they were acquired by Elgin under a legal contract with the Ottoman Empire and has rejected the demands of their return.
- In March, British Prime Minister said the marbles are a “huge asset” to the UK and ruled out changing a law that would allow the sculptures to be given back to Greece.
India to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030; needs financing: Report
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Why in news?
- India's 14th National Electricity Plan (NEP) sets it on a path to more than triple its renewable energy capacity by 2030, but the country needs a whopping USD 293 billion to achieve this, according to a report released by global energy think tank Ember recently.
Tripling renewable energy:
- The International Energy Agency (IEA) says the world must triple its renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency by 2030 to decrease the need for fossil fuels and limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.
- Led by the US, the European Union (EU), and the UAE, over 60 countries now support the commitment to triple renewable energy and double energy efficiency.
- While the G20 nations have endorsed tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030 under India's presidency, the UAE, hosting 2023 UN climate conference, advocates for a global agreement on this at COP28.
Net Zero Emissions:
- The IEA's Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario outlines a global pathway to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2050, with advanced economies reaching net zero emissions ahead of others.
- In climate terms, net zero means achieving a balance between the greenhouse gases put into the atmosphere and those taken out.
- The Ember report suggests that India is already planning a substantial increase in renewable energy, making it feasible to achieve the goal of tripling renewable energy capacity.
- However, if the country aims to follow the IEA's plan and achieve "net-zero" status (where it doesn't produce more greenhouse gases than it removes), it needs to set even higher goals. This implies that India would need to generate around 32 per cent of its energy from solar and 12 per cent from wind by 2030.
Additional capacity:
- To achieve this, India will need to add an additional capacity of 115 GW of solar and 9 GW of wind by 2030, on top of the targets set in its NEP14 plan. This will increase India's total renewable capacity to 448 GW of solar and 122 GW of wind by 2030.
- India's current goal is to reach 500 GW of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.
- Between 2023 and 2030, the country requires USD 293 billion to meet its current goals for solar and wind power.
Finance component:
- The analysis reveals that India requires an additional financing of USD 101 billion to further expand its renewable energy capacity and align with the IEA's proposed net-zero scenario.
- It highlighted issues such as payment delays and unfavourable rules and regulations that deter investors from providing the necessary funding to achieve these goals.
- The financial requirements to achieve both the NEP14 target and the IEA net-zero scenario far surpass the current investment and funding capacities available in India.
Way Forward:
- To further enhance ambitions to align with the global net-zero pathway, securing significantly more financing at competitive rates will be crucial to ensure India's viability in reaching this goal.
- Access to this finance is critical for India to avoid constructing new coal capacity to meet its rising demand in this decade.
