India's Efforts to Maintain and Enhance Energy Security While Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions

India faces the twin challenges of sustaining its fast economic growth, which is essential for improving the quality of life of its 1.21 billion people, and adapting to climate change. India has an abundance of coal and strong potential in hydroenergy, but limited oil and gas reserves. Coal will thus continue to play a major role in meeting India's growing energy demands. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the government will focus on developing the country's renewable energy sources such as hydro and nuclear energy, deploying clean coal technologies, as well as improving energy conservation and enhancing energy efficiency. To this end, the Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change has inter alia suggested three key national missions namely, National Solar Mission, National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency and National Mission for a "Green India''.