Rs 2500 cr for upgrading infra of DD, AIR
NEW DELHI, Jan 4: Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Cabinet today approved a Rs 19,744 crore incentive plan to promote the manufacturing of green hydrogen in the country in a bid to cut emissions.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said the Cabinet approved the National Green Hydrogen Mission which is expected to attract Rs 8 lakh crore of investment in the green hydrogen chain.
India aims to produce 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen per annum in the next five years and the incentives would help bring down the cost.
“The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved National Green Hydrogen Mission,” Thakur said while briefing reporters about the Cabinet decisions.
Carbon-free hydrogen, which can be used as fuel in automobiles and as an energy source in industries such as oil refineries and steel plants, is produced by splitting water. When electricity generated from renewable sources such as the sun is used to split water through electrolysis, green hydrogen is produced. Oxygen is a by-product of such a process.
The initial outlay for the mission will be Rs 19,744 crore, including an outlay of Rs 17,490 crore for the SIGHT programme, Rs 1,466 crore for pilot projects, Rs 400 crore for R&D, and Rs 388 crore towards other mission components.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) will formulate the scheme guidelines for implementation.
The mission seeks to promote development of green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 MMT (Million Metric Tonnes) per annum with an associated renewable energy capacity addition of about 125 GW in the country by 2030.
It envisages an investment of over Rs 8 lakh crore and creation of over 6 lakh jobs by 2030.
It will also result in cumulative reduction in fossil fuel imports of over Rs 1 lakh crore and abatement of nearly 50 MMT of annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
Commenting on the move, Rajat Seksaria, CEO of ACME Group, said it offers a great opportunity for India to become a global export hub of green hydrogen and ammonia.
He further said “the incentive program makes the green molecule from India competitive. This is required for the initial few projects and create green hydrogen hubs, which will allow supply chains to be established and scale of production to increase.”
Several nations have already come up with green hydrogen subsidy and support programs. Recently, the US announced a big support plan for clean hydrogen through Inflation Reduction Act. Germany, UK and Japan are also providing support to clean hydrogen through state support programs, he added.
The Mission will have wide ranging benefits — creation of export opportunities for green hydrogen and its derivatives; decarbonisation of industrial, mobility and energy sectors; reduction in dependence on imported fossil fuels and feedstock; development of indigenous manufacturing capabilities; creation of employment opportunities; and development of cutting-edge technologies, an official statement said.
The Mission will facilitate demand creation, production, utilisation and export of green hydrogen. Under the Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition Programme (SIGHT), two distinct financial incentive mechanisms — targeting domestic manufacturing of electrolysers and production of green hydrogen — will be provided under the Mission.
The Mission will also support pilot projects in emerging end-use sectors and production pathways. Regions capable of supporting large scale production and/or utilisation of hydrogen will be identified and developed as Green Hydrogen Hubs, the minister added.
Meanwhile, in a bid to upgrade Prasar Bharati’s broadcast infrastructure and network, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved a scheme worth more than Rs 2,500 crore for Doordarshan and All India Radio.
Thakur announced the Central Sector ‘Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND)’ scheme with an outlay of Rs 2,539.61 crore up to 2025-26, which was approved by the CCEA.
“The BIND scheme is the vehicle for providing financial support to Prasar Bharati for expenses related to expansion and upgradation of its broadcasting infrastructure, content development and civil work related to the organization,” the I&B Ministry said in a statement.
“Prasar Bharati, as the public broadcaster of the country, is the most important vehicle of information, education, entertainment and engagement for the people especially in the remote areas of the country through Doordarshan and All India Radio (AIR).
“Prasar Bharati played a stellar role in communicating health messages and awareness to the public during the Covid pandemic,” the statement said.
The BIND scheme will enable the public broadcaster to undertake a major upgradation of its facilities with better infrastructure which will widen its reach, including in the LWE (Left Wing Extremism), border and strategic areas and provide high quality content to the viewers.
Another priority area of the scheme is the development of high-quality content for both domestic and international audiences and ensuring availability of diverse content to the viewers by upgradation of capacity of the DTH platform to accommodate more channels, the ministry said.
Purchase of OB vans and digital upgradation of DD and AIR studios to make them HD ready will also be done as part of the project.
Thakur said that the scheme envisions how Doordarshan should be 20 years from now.
“Prasar Bharti is the public broadcaster…It is not just about profit making. The aim is to ensure information regarding government’s work and schemes reaches people. Different reports have pointed at the quality of content, whether it is Doordarshan or AIR,” said Thakur, adding both DD and AIR are also available on mobile phones.
“We are planning how DD should look 20 years from now,” he said.
According to the I&B Ministry, at present, Doordarshan operates 36 TV channels, including 28 regional channels, and AIR operates more than 500 broadcasting centres. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
