{"id":69322,"date":"2026-03-18T18:25:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T12:55:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=69322"},"modified":"2026-03-18T18:25:58","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T12:55:58","slug":"india-carbon-credit-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/18-03-2026\/india-carbon-credit-plan","title":{"rendered":"Uncertainty Around India\u2019s Carbon Credit Plan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/ Environment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <strong>\u20b920,000<\/strong> crore <strong>carbon credit programme announced in <\/strong>Union Budget 2026 led to widespread debate, whether the allocation is meant for industrial decarbonisation (CCUS) or farmer-based carbon credit generation through sustainable agriculture.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About Carbon Credit Programme<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Under the Union Budget 2026-27, the Union government announced a<strong> Rs 20,000 crore<\/strong> outlay over the next five years through a dedicated scheme for <strong>Carbon Capture, Storage and Utilisation (CCUS).\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The scheme will support CCUS initiatives to aid the decarbonisation goals of five industrial sectors of the economy, namely, <strong>power, steel, cement, refineries and chemicals.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Carbon Capture, Storage and Utilisation (CCUS)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>CCUS refers to a set of technologies that <strong>capture carbon dioxide emissions from industrial processes<\/strong> or power plants and either reuse them or store them safely underground, helping reduce the amount of climate-warming gases released into the atmosphere.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In practice, this involves capturing CO\u2082 at the source, transporting it via pipelines or other means, and then either using it in industrial applications or <strong>storing it deep underground<\/strong> to prevent its release into the atmosphere.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"c6c2be\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"491\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-104.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-69323\" style=\"--dominant-color: #c6c2be; width:504px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-104.png 768w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-104-300x192.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Roadmap on CCUS<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The roadmap proposes a<strong> three-phase R&amp;D strategy<\/strong> for developing CCUS technologies in India.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>First, near-term efforts<\/strong> focus on scaling up and deploying existing, proven carbon capture and storage technologies across industrial sectors.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Second<\/strong>, mid-term work prioritises the demonstration and validation of next-generation capture, utilisation and storage solutions that improve performance and cost efficiency.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Third<\/strong>, long-term investments support fundamental research into breakthrough concepts and disruptive innovations that could transform CCUS capabilities and reduce costs over time.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Concern over Carbon Credit Plan<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <strong>carbon credit programme<\/strong> created an impression that it would have a broad, economy-wide scope, including sectors such as agriculture.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>However, in practice, the budgetary provisions are primarily aligned with the <strong>CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage)<\/strong> roadmap.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This has led to confusion because the term <strong>carbon credit programme <\/strong>is commonly associated with agriculture-based carbon markets, where farmers can earn income through practices like<strong> soil carbon sequestration and agroforestry.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Agriculture is Not Included?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The roadmap excludes agriculture from the scope of CCUS, despite recognising it as a contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Reasons:\u00a0<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Agricultural emissions are<strong> largely diffuse in nature<\/strong>, arising from dispersed sources such as <strong>fields, livestock, and soil processes.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>These emissions are biologically mediated, primarily in the form of <strong>methane and nitrous oxide<\/strong>, which cannot be captured using point-source technologies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>As a result, agriculture falls under <strong>Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR)<\/strong> rather than CCUS, where the focus is on removing existing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere instead of capturing new emissions.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This is achieved through practices such as <strong>soil carbon sequestration, agroforestry, and biochar application<\/strong>, which enhance carbon storage in natural ecosystems.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Ahead<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India must adopt a <strong>multi-sectoral and clearly demarcated strategy<\/strong> that distinctly addresses both industrial decarbonisation and agricultural carbon sequestration to avoid policy overlap and confusion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The government should promote carbon farming practices by providing <strong>financial incentives, capacity building, and strong institutional support<\/strong>, so that farmers can effectively participate in emerging carbon markets and generate additional income.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/op-ed\/a-bit-of-a-blur-over-indias-new-carbon-credit-plan\/article70754773.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong> Context <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> The \u20b920,000 crore carbon credit programme announced in Union Budget 2026 led to widespread debate, whether the allocation is meant for industrial decarbonisation (CCUS) or farmer-based carbon credit generation through sustainable agriculture. <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong> About Carbon Credit Programme <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> Under the Union Budget 2026-27, the Union government announced a Rs 20,000 crore outlay over the next five years through a dedicated scheme for Carbon Capture, Storage and Utilisation (CCUS).\u00a0 <\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> The scheme will support CCUS initiatives to aid the decarbonisation goals of five industrial sectors of the economy, namely, power, steel, cement, refineries and chemicals. <\/li>\n<p><a href=\" https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/18-03-2026\/india-carbon-credit-plan \" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-69322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69322"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69322\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":69325,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69322\/revisions\/69325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}