Energy Transition from fossil fuel to renewable may lead to massive migration of people: IIT Kanpur study

With eastern states becoming mere consumers of power from generators of the same, there will be huge economic and social implications. It is particularly critical for Bengal which alone has 300 coal mines, said Swati D ’Souza of the International Energy Agency (EIA).

Energy Transition from fossil fuel to renewable may lead to massive migration of people: IIT Kanpur study

The energy transition from fossil fuel to renewable may lead to massive migration of people from east and central to the west and southern India, predicted Professor Pradip Swarnakar of IIT-Kanpur who also heads the Just Transition Research Centre (JTRC) at the IIT. “It is because coal mines are located in eastern and central India while the solar power plants are mostly coming up in the west and south India,” he added while setting the agenda of the media workshop in Kolkata.

With eastern states becoming mere consumers of power from generators of the same, there will be huge economic and social implications. It is particularly critical for Bengal which alone has 300 coal mines, said Swati D ’Souza of the International Energy Agency (EIA). “Just Transition did not happen overnight. Germany has been on the path of transition since 1960 and it is still on,” she added.

A report, on a mine closure in Assam and its far-reaching impact on life and livelihood in the region, which was released on the programme by Bengal’s Pollution Control Board chairman Kalyan Rudra, was a case study for the journalists on how environmental and wildlife concerns led to the closure in Margherita coal mine in Assam with enormous socio-economic consequences. Strong institutional support in health care and education enhanced the resilience of the mining community against the adversities of mine closure, the press release stated.

“It is no point just aping the west. Even the best practice of the west can fail miserably in the east. We need to harmonize modern science with our traditional knowledge,” said Kalyan Rudra. Somshankar Bose, a consultant with the World Bank, said, “Indian Government has set a target of 520 gigawatts (GW) of non-conventional energy by 2030; 62 per cent through wind and rest is solar.” India’s current consumption is 400 GW.

JTRC, IIT-Kanpur in association with Climate Trends, also announced the Just Transition Writing and Research Fellowship for the duration of three months, a number of fellowships will be three in three languages, English, Hindi, and Bengali. Fellows will be offered a monthly stipend and mentorship at IIT-Kanpur, starting 2 September 2022, last date of application is September 16.

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