Goa, Gujarat top NITI Aayog’s state energy and climate index

In the first round outcome that was announced on Monday, Goa topped the NITI Aayog state energy and climate index in the smaller states category. Amongst the larger states, Gujarat had emerged the best followed by Kerala in the second position and Punjab in the third.

In its first round, the index ranked the states in six parameters based on 2019-2020 data, where Goa had earned an overall score of 51.4. CM Pramod Sawant tweeted that Goa stands topper in the NITI Aayog state energy and climate index in the small state category and the index rates the performance based on some parameters like DISCOM’s performance, affordability and reliability, access, clean energy initiatives, environmental sustainability and new initiatives, and energy efficiency.

After Goa, Tripura emerged as the top performer, followed by Manipur. In terms of Union territories, Chandigarh, Delhi and Daman and Diu/Dadra and Nagar Haveli had the best scores in that order.

Goa had scored high at 62.4 in the clean energy initiative parameter with Tripura holding the second-best score that was far lower at 22.9. Goa had lost points in the energy efficiency, where it scored 16.6 and 12.4 in new initiatives parameters, while Tripuras had surpassed Goa with scores of 31.7 and 58.7 respectively.

To be a part of global efforts in restricting the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial era, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced five parameters that would help India in cutting down emissions for meeting the net-zero target by 2070 and these steps shaped the parameters for NITI Aayog index.

Amongst the larger states, the bottom three performers were Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, whereas the smaller states included Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. In the union territories, Andaman and Nicobar islands, J&K and Lakshadweep island performed the worst.