Harnessing Solar Energy Through Photovoltaic System in Chandigarh: A Step Towards Preparing for Climate Change
| DOI | 10.1177/0019556119844593 |
| Author | Purva Mishra |
| Date | 01 June 2019 |
| Published date | 01 June 2019 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Harnessing Solar Energy
Through Photovoltaic
System in Chandigarh:
A Step Towards
Preparing for
Climate Change
Purva Mishra1
Abstract
Climate is rapidly changing with disruptive impacts. Without decisive action,
energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions would lead to climate degra-
dation. All types of energy efficiency technologies will require widespread
deployment, as global warming is likely to reach 1.5°C between 2030 and 2052,
if it continues to increase at the current rate. Photovoltaic (PV) energy is one
of the most promising emerging technologies in mitigating the impact of climate
change. PV is the name of a method of converting solar energy into direct current
electricity. Therefore, the objectives of this article are to study the initiatives
taken by energy development agencies in India for promoting renewable sources
of energy, to study the use of solar power as a renewable source of energy
through PV system and to analyse the solar PV rooftop system in Chandigarh
as a case study. The article is an empirical study based on primary data. For the
purpose of collecting the primary data, a structured questionnaire was prepared
for citizens and an interview schedule for officials. The results of the study show
that the majority of the citizens were satisfied with the solar photovoltaic (SPV)
installations in Chandigarh, while a very few of them were dissatisfied and their
dissatisfaction revolved around getting clearances from different departments.
Article
Indian Journal of Public
Administration
65(2) 325–345, 2019
© 2019 IIPA
Reprints and permissions:
in.sagepub.com/journals-permissions-india
DOI: 10.1177/0019556119844593
journals.sagepub.com/home/ipa
The paper ‘Harnessing Solar Energy through Photovoltaic System in Chandigarh: A Step towards
preparing for a Climate Change’ was presented at the Annual Conference of Public Administration
held at Atlanta, GA, USA, on 17–21 March 2017.
1 Assistant Professor, Department of Public Administration, University School of Open Learning,
Panjab University, Chandigarh, India.
Corresponding author:
Dr. Purva Mishra, Assistant Professor, Department of Public Administration, University School of
Open Learning, Panjab University, Sector 14, Chandigarh, 160014, India.
E-mail: drpurvamishra@gmail.com
326 Indian Journal of Public Administration 65(2)
Keywords
Climate, temperature, photovoltaic system, energy, citizens
Introduction
Climate is one of the most important components of the environment which has
direct or indirect influence on the human species as well as on the biodiversity.
Most commonly, climate is known as the long-term average weather conditions
prevailing over an area. Climate is dynamic in many respects. For example, it
varies in time and space, and changes occur over sufficiently long periods of time.
Climate change is the long-term change in the Earth’s climate due to astrophysi-
cal, geophysical or human-induced parametric variations. The Inter-governmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines climate change as:
a change in the state of the climate that can be identied (e.g., by using statistical tests)
by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties, and that persists for an
extended period, typically decades or longer. Climate change may be due to natural
internal processes or external forcings or to persistent anthropogenic changes in the
composition of the atmosphere or in land use. (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change [IPCC], 2007)
defines climate change as ‘a change of climate which is attributed directly or
indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere
and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable
time periods’ (United Nations, 1992).
The UNFCCC definition is the most restricted one as it excludes climate
changes attributable to natural causes. The IPCC definition can be paraphrased
for popular communications as ‘A change in the climate that persists for decades
or longer, arising from either natural causes or human activity’ (United Nations
Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, 2009).
Social scientists have been recognising the impacts of climate change since
1960. After that, a movement to save the Earth and the precious life on it received
serious attention. The Stockholm Conference in 1972 was the first international
recognition and manifestation of the urgency to address climate change as it
affects both the developed and developing countries, though the degree of impact
could vary. Since then, the countries have been working towards developing a
clean and efficient energy system to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
Energy is a vital input for production and growth. Considering universal energy
access and energy security as one of the fundamental development goals for the
countries, the Government of India has undertaken a two-pronged approach to
cater to the energy demand of its citizens while ensuring minimum growth in
carbon emissions (UNFCCC, 2017).
On the generation side, the government is promoting greater use of renew-
ables in the energy mix mainly through solar and wind power and shifting
towards supercritical technologies for coal-based power plants. On the demand
To continue reading
Request your trial