Centre tweaks PM solar free electricity scheme (GS Paper 3, Economy)
Why in news?
- The Union government has tweaked the new ₹75,000-crore PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana (rooftop solar: free electricity scheme).
Details:
- From an initial plan to fully subsidise the installation of 1 kW-3 kW solar systems in one crore households via tie-ups with renewable energy service companies, the scheme will now only contribute up to 60% of the costs.
- Households interested in availing the scheme’s benefits will have to fork out the balance amount and pay a minimum of ₹20,000 depending on the power capacity of the installed system though this could be defrayed by a low-interest, collateral-free loan.
- Only houses with a suitable roof and an existing connection to the grid will be eligible for the scheme and consumers still have to pay for all the net power supplied and consumed via the grid.
- Through a system of net-metering, any solar power produced in a household and unused will flow back into the grid and will be offset in the household’s electricity bill.
- Depending on consumption patterns, this could even mean consumers earning money, though the general experience, the world over, shows a reduction in bills.
Current installation cost:
- Currently a rooftop solar system costs about ₹50,000 per kW.
- A householder can either pay the balance or take a loan.
- A vendor will appraise the site and then install the system along with an inverter and a smart meter that can switch between grid and solar supply. Operation and maintenance costs up to five years will be factored into the cost.
Modification:
- As the scheme is now envisaged, 12 public sector banks will offer a collateral free loan (1% above the current prevailing RBI repo rate, now 6.5%) to anyone with a viable roof and grid connectivity and wanting to install a rooftop system.
- A 3 kW-hour system can generate up to 300 units a month, depending on available sunshine and for this a maximum subsidy of up to ₹78,000 will be available.
Countries hope to bring High Seas treaty into force by 2025
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Why in news?
- The Blue Leaders High-Level Event on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction was held in Belgium to urge nations to ratify a new treaty to protect the high seas from pollution, climate change and overfishing.
Details:
- Countries agreed to a new treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ Treaty) in March 2023. It was formally adopted two months later.
- Speakers at the event decided to use the United Nations Ocean Conference to be held in 2025 as a platform to bring the BBNJ Treaty into force.
Ratification:
- So far, 88 countries are signatories to the treaty. Only two, Chile and Palau have ratified it so far. The BBNJ will “enter into force” when at least 60 countries ratify it.
- The agreement was opened for signature on September 20, 2023. It will be closed on September 20, 2025. This means countries have given their consent to be bound to it.
- After this deadline, countries can no longer sign (express their intention to ratify). But they can still accede to the treaty, which has the same legal status as ratification.
- India is yet to sign the treaty. However, it called on efforts for entry into force and implementation of the treaty at the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration held in September 2023.
What are high seas?
- The high seas are areas beyond 200 nautical miles from the exclusive economic zones of coastal countries.
- The treaty aims to increase the percentage of protected areas on the high seas.
- Despite covering more than two-thirds of the global ocean, only 1.44 per cent of the high seas are protected.
Salient features of the treaty:
- The treaty will also ensure that profits from marine genetic resources (MGR); materials of plant, animal or microbes are shared equitably and fairly. These resources find applications in medicine and pharma.
- Additionally, the treaty provides ground rules for Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), which deal with identifying and evaluating the potential impacts an activity could have on the ocean.
- Carbon sequestration activities or deep-sea mining, for example, will have to do EIAs. Ocean-based carbon sequestration involves using oceans to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Challenges ahead:
- After the treaty is ratified, countries will still have to address several challenges.
- There was still a lot of groundwork to be done on how exactly the treaty will function such as agreeing on the rules of procedure for the bodies that will sit under it, budgets and even where the Secretariat will be based.
- Countries will also have to work to secure large-scale protection of marine life to address the accelerating climate and biodiversity crises.
- In 2022, governments agreed to protect at least 30 per cent of marine life by 2030 as the 15th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity adopted the “Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework”. The high seas, which make up two-thirds of the ocean, will be key to achieving this target.
