CLEAN ENERGY OR CHEAP ENERGY: ADDRESSING INDIA'S ENERGY CHALLENGE

Aslesha Dhillon, December 2016

ABSTRACT: The aim of this paper is to analyze how India can address its energy challenge of providing affordable and clean energy to all its citizens. Chapter 2 will introduce the energy landscape of India, discussing the current status and implications of energy poverty and deficits. Chapter 3 will discuss the national energy policy of India focusing on its energy targets, INDCs, electricity grid and energy efficiency. Chapter 4 will discuss the main institutional actors in the energy landscape of India. Chapter 5 will dwell more deeply into the challenges of increasing renewables in the energy mix of India through reviewing various scenarios that account for the financial, economic and environmental factors and also critically analyze the various policies of India promoting mini-grids. Chapter 6 will finally conclude the paper by providing recommendation on the role of institutions in integrating grid and off-grid efforts and the role of community initiatives.