As the demand for cooling increases across the world, the country must ensure that people have affordable and sustainable cooling solutions, Minister of State for Rural Development and Communications Dr Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani said on Monday.
Addressing the Global Heat and Cooling Forum hosted by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) , he said that heat waves are not just a climate issue, it is a human crisis. “As the mercury rises, access to cooling no longer remains a privilege, it becomes a fundamental right,” he added. Hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s move for making India the first country in the world to develop a comprehensive cooling action plan, the Minister said that by promoting energy efficient cooling systems, phasing out harmful refrigerants and prioritizing vulnerable communities, the country is paving the way for a cooler and more resilient future.
Rising temperatures, erratic rainfall and prolonged droughts directly impact agriculture, food security, water availability and public health and rural India is not just vulnerable to it but also the heart of its solution. “Recognizing this dual role, the Ministry of Rural Development, under India's comprehensive whole-of-the-government approach, has proactively introduced sustainable measures,” Dr Pemmasani said.
The Minister further pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi's National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has helped create climate-adaptive infrastructure, including water conservative systems, shade plantations and drought mitigation projects. “The Pradhan Mantri Grameen Sadak Yojana connected nearly every remote village, so that even during the climate extremes people have access to all weather roads and the Jal Jeevan Mission aimed to provide safe drinking water from sustainable resources so that every household, regardless of the climate conditions can have clean water,” he said.
Heat waves have already claimed over 11,000 lives since 2009, the Minister pointed out, making them India's deadliest natural disaster after cyclones. The impact of heat waves however extends beyond health and by 2050, it is estimated that more than 200 million people will be affected and the country’s GDP could cut down by close to four and a half percent as most of the country’s informal workforce depends on outdoor labour, he noted
“Since 2016, we have built over 30 million houses, providing millions of rural families which are economically disadvantaged with safe, dignified and resilient homes but now with the World Bank, we are going one step further with the SHIELD project,” the MoS said. He further said that SHIELD refers to Sustainable Housing, Integrating Efficient Living and Disaster Resilience and it is designed to make rural housing cooler, more energy efficient and more disaster resilient.
Further talking about the Government’s vision in terms of climate and disaster resilient housing infrastructure Dr Pemmasani said, “We are embedding climate adaptive design, energy efficient technologies into new housing construction and are also strengthening access to affordable credit so that families can invest in cooling solutions without much financial burden.”
