The Indian Express | PM Modi launches 3 green initiatives at India Energy Week

Feb 06,2023

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched three initiatives in the green energy sector during the inaugural India Energy Week in Bengaluru Monday.

The first was the ‘Unbottled’ project of the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, under which Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) bottles are recycled to produce yarn to knit fabric. The other two were a solar cooking system and E20, an ethanol-blended fuel, which will be available in select cities before being supplied across the country.

The Union minister for petroleum and natural gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, said the ‘Unbottled’ project aims at recycling 100 million PET bottles annually and will be the largest project in the world to reuse and recycle such bottles. “PET bottles will be converted to cloth for the frontline workers of Oil Marketing Companies, non-combat uniforms for Armed Forces and other institutions,” he said.

Modi also launched ethanol-blended fuel E20, which will be available at 84 outlets in 11 states of the country. A Green Mobility Rally was also flagged off where vehicles running on green energy sources took part to create awareness on green fuel.

Puri said India has come out with an energy agenda that was inclusive, market-based, and climate-sensitive. “We remain focused on energy efficiency, laying impetus on fuels of the future including biofuels and hydrogen, and increasing the use of renewable energies. At the same time, we are taking transformative steps to increase domestic exploration and production of traditional hydrocarbons,” he added.