Green Cooling Solutions in India by 2040 - DTE - 02/12/22

Context:
According to the report ‘Climate Investment Opportunities in India's Cooling Sector’ released by the World Bank Group, investment opportunities in India’s cooling sector through less carbon-intensive technologies could add up to USD 1.6 trillion.
Relevance:
GS3 - Env. Poluution
About:
Highlights of the Report:-
-The report analyzed the India Cooling Action Plan (ICAP) launched in 2019 and came up with suggestions for prioritizing the government’s investment opportunities in the cooling sector.
-The report does not focus on air conditioning because only 40% of Indians will have air conditioning by 2040 — which is currently around 8% — and the rest for whom passive cooling technologies have to be the focus.
-Investment opportunities across three different sectors — construction, cold chains and refrigerants — have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions significantly and also create nearly 3.7 million jobs.
-Around 34 million people in the country might lose their jobs because of heat stress and subsequent decline in productivity.

Recommendations:
-Sustainable Space Cooling
-Passive Cooling Strategies
-Thermal Comfort
-District Cooling Systems (DCS)
-Cold Chain and Refrigeration

ICAP:
-It seeks to recognize “cooling and related areas” as a thrust area of research under the National S&T Programme.
-It is part of India’s national strategy for cooling, whose objective is to reduce country-wide demand for cooling by 25 % by 2037-2038.