An approach to sustainable-development-based energy and climate policies in India
Radhika Khosla,a Srihari Dukkipati,b Navroz K Dubash,a Ashok Sreenivas,b Brett Cohenc
a Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi
b Prayas (Energy Group), Pune
c Energy Research Centre, University of Cape Town
DOI 10.12910/EAI2016-017
Planning for India’s energy future requires addressing multiple and simultaneous economic, social and environmental challenges. While there has been conceptual progress towards harnessing their synergies, there are limited methodologies available for operationalising a multiple objective framework for development and climate policy. We propose a ‘multi-criteria decision analysis’ (MCDA) approach to this problem, using illustrative examples from the building and cooking sectors
India faces a challenging decade ahead in energy and climate policy-making. Problems are multiple: sputtering energy production capabilities; limited energy access; rising fuel imports; continued electricity governance and pricing challenges; and growing environmental contestation around land, water, and air. In addition, India’s intended climate ‘contribution’ for the global climate negotiations will necessarily influence its domestic energy use, since energy accounts for 77% of its greenhouse gas emissions. India’s energy future thus requires addressing multiple and simultaneous challenges, that together suggest great complexity…