Creating an integrated resource efficiency policy for India - with public input

TERI prepared the 'Reference Document towards Developing an Integrated Resource Efficiency Policy for India' in consultation with the Resource Efficiency Cell of the MoEFCC

India is the third largest consumer of material after China and USA. With increasing economic growth, rapid urbanization, and rising human aspiration, the per capita consumption will tend to rise, thereby accelerating the future demand for resources. Augmenting resources would be a challenge in the future as the increasing imports of critical materials are exposed to volatile international prices, depreciating Indian currency and limited diversification of sources of imports. Therefore, there is a need to initiate the missing integrated thinking and efforts in mainstreaming efficiency in consumption and production of products across sectors and initiate the need for a coordinated approach to strategize and adopt a value chain thinking under a unified framework.

As a step towards mainstreaming resource efficiency thinking in India, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has set up Resource Efficiency (RE) Cell. It is considered an important step towards mainstreaming sustainable consumption and production in policy and practice. MoEF&CC is uniquely positioned to take the resource efficiency agenda forward through its reach and influence over a wide range of stakeholders and different ministries, leveraging the Environment (Protection) Act and Rules thereunder, which is the major legislative instrument currently available for driving resource use efficiency. MoEF&CC has signed a Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) with European Union under the Resource Efficiency Initiative project in India, implemented by the consortium GIZ, TERI, CII and adelphi. MoEF&CC has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with TERI, where TERI would be the knowledge partner of the RE Cell.

TERI, in consultation with the RE Cell, prepared the 'Reference Document towards Developing an Integrated Resource Efficiency Policy for India'. This will further be used to prepare the Integrated Resource Efficiency Policy. Public comments and suggestions were invited for the reference document till February 6. Interested stakeholders and members of the public can still see the reference document here.