Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO)’s chairman, Vikram Kapur was asked to appear before the Madras High Court today to apprise the court about the status of the power sector in the state. Here are extracts from his recent interview to CSE on the direction Tamil Nadu should take on power
Energy transition is now a must
Marie-Hélène Aubert, adviser to the French president for international negotiations on climate and environment, was recently in New Delhi to attend the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit. She was a member of the Green party from 1990 to 2008. In an interview with Arnab Pratim Dutta and Uthra Radhakrishnan she sheds light on France’s plans to reduce dependence on nuclear …
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‘Energy conservation is a moving target’
A decade has passed since the Energy Conservation Act was enacted in 2001. Most provisions of the law are yet to be implemented properly. Ajay Mathur, director of the Board of Energy Efficiency, shares his views with Ruhi Kandhari and Umashankar
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Breakthrough in fuel cell
K T Jacob, Indian National Academy of Engineeringdistinguished professor at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, has devised a new type of solid-oxide fuel cell, useful for power generation. The concept, which would result in optimal use of fuel and reduce the cost of power generation, was presented at the Indian Science Congress held at SRM University in Chennai. He explains the …
'Bioenergy is being taken quite seriously'
Gerald Leach is a senior research fellow at the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) in London. He has written extensively on rural energy issues in developing countries at the SEI and earlier at the International Institute of Environment and Development (IIED). He is an expert on food-energy linkages of development. He was in India recently as a member of the International Organising …
Solar power is the only viable alternative
K R DATYE has been associated for years with grassroots organisations such as the Pani Panchayat and the Mukti Sangharsh, which has spearheaded struggles for equal water distribution and peasant-built small dams in Maharashtra's Sangli district. An engineer by profession, Datye has also been active in the field of alternative technology, including irrigation, energy and materials. Grappling …
"There can be no development without women"
REACHING Doongri, a picturesque village perched 1,750 m above sea level in the Pindar valley in Chamoli district, is a daunting task. The nearest bus stand is at Narayan Bagad, 12 km away and at a height of about 1,100 m. From there, a narrow, slippery mountain path climbs steeply and is certainly not recommended for those who suffer from vertigo. An attempt to build a motorable road to …
"The North has not kept its commitments on technology transfer"
Economist Klaus W Lippold is the chairperson of the Commission for Protection of the Earth's Atmosphere. As a member of the German Parliament since 1983, he is on the committees on Economic and Environmental Affairs, besides being a member of the board of the German Association of Manufacturers. Early this year, Lippold led a delegation of energy experts to the Indo-German brainstorming …
'Commercialisation alone can sustain non-conventional energy sources'
G V RAMAKRISHNA is a member of the Planning Commission, currently dealing with the energy sector. The former Indian Administrative Service officer was India's ambassador to Belgium from 1988-1990. He was appointed chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India in 1990, and continued to head it through the turbulent days of the stocks scam up to December 1993. …
'I don't want subsidies'
For five years the non-profit Centre for Renewable Energy has been promoting and selling expensive solar lamps to poor families in Nepal. Today more than 100,000 households use these lamps. The ngo created the market without any subsidy. Its president Babu Raja Shrestha told Priyanka Chandola how. Edited excerpts
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